The Queen's Gambit - A Salazzle Story
by Ausfer
Summary: This is an adult pokemon story involving a trainer and his salazzle, and explores the misadventures he endures while training a notoriously manipulative species of pokemon. I put a lot of work into this one! Some chapters have explicit adult scenes, and that stuff is gross, mk? So don't look at it. I mean, seriously. It's bad for your health or something.
1. The Queen's Gambit

_The Queen's Gambit ~ A Salazzle Story_

_Disclaimer: The following events are true, but names and other details have been changed to protect the identity of those involved. Any resemblance to real pokemon trainers is coincidental. _

I stumbled into the living room, struggling with the toxic haze swirling in my brain. The persian had knocked over my lamp in pursuit of the sandshrews, the kadabra was levitating every spoon in my silverware drawer, and a panicky onix was trying to force its way inside through the back door. A poliwag and a totodile were taking a bath in my kitchen sink, a pikachu was munching on electrical cables, and two hyperactive mankeys were ripping out the stuffing in my couch. I was half-naked, poisoned, burned, covered in scratches, intoxicated by pheromones, and chasing a cackling dominatrix lizard who had just set fire to my carpet.

I bet you're wondering how I got here. Well, it's a long story.

It all started ... yesterday.

And what a day that was.

It's what I'd like to call ... a bad salazzle day.

Yesterday I got a phone call. Saffron City's Pokemon Shelter had a special case for me: a homewrecker of a salazzle that no trainer wanted. I thought it'd be no big deal. Boy, was I wrong. That little lizard changed _everything_.

But before I get ahead of myself, I'll tell you a little about me, first.

The name's Riley. I'm a Pokemon Rehabilitator. Ever been to a Pokemon shelter? People give up pokemon for adoption all the time. Sadly, some unwanted pokemon are too broken to re-adopt, and too unprepared to release into the wild. Maybe they're poorly trained, or they've been abused, or they're just downright aggressive. That's where I come in: I take in "trouble" pokemon and rehabilitate them so they can find their new forever home. It's a government-funded career, just like working at a Poke Center. Which means decent pay, full benefits, and tax refunds on pokemon supplies. I love my job, and as a bonus, chicks totally dig it.

I used to be a trainer. I was pretty good, too: I earned my eight regional badges, even braved Victory Road. But I couldn't have just _any _pokemon on my team. Even as a kid, I was determined to find the rarest, most difficult-to-train pokemon. I wanted to beat the odds: to earn their trust, their friendship, and eventually their loyalty. Forging that special bond with a pokemon made me feel ... man, I just felt, alive, ya know? It's an indescribable feeling of _satisfaction_. The problem was that I couldn't keep a steady win rate because I was always switching my team. Once I had hit my peak with a pokemon's bond, I was already looking for the next challenge, the next new team member. Eventually I realized that I enjoyed taming pokemon more than battling.

So I hung up my trainer's gear, donated most of my team to loving trainers, and applied for an internship at the world-famous Pallet Town Pokemon Lab, which specialized in pokemon behavior. And I got in, beating over a_ hundred_ other candidates. I studied hard for years, and did incredible work under Professor Oak's tutelage. I even completed my thesis on the psychological co-dependency between pokemon and humans. But I missed the grind, being out in the feild. I wanted to train pokemon again. That's when Oak told me about the crisis in Pokemon Shelters: shelters across Kanto were full of "untrainable" pokemon that nobody would touch. My heart was stirred. The Prof knew it before even I did: that was my true calling.

Fast forward five years. I'm at the prime of my life, financially independent, and living on the outskirts of Kanto's wealthiest district: Saffron City – "The Shining City of Gold". Practically every shelter in Kanto knows me on a first-name basis. I've given special lectures on pokemon handling to hundreds of young would-be Pokemon Masters. _Trainer's Digest_ did a piece on me last year _(check out TD vol. 836, pages 12-14!)_. Some people even call me the _Pokemon Whisperer_ ... okay, maybe just me.

My point is I've got it good in life. I currently have thirty three pokemon in my care, not including Rufio, my lucario. Every superhero needs a sidekick, and I'd be lost without my little blue buddy. Rufio is my secretary, translator, confidant, and pokemon mood ring all rolled up in one adorably stoic pupper. His ability to read the emotions of other pokemon is indispensable for my work, and his telepathy allows me to completely bypass the language barrier.

I take in a lot of special cases. Right now I'm counselling a growlithe with separation anxiety, an ivysaur scared of her own pokeball, a blind pidgeot, and a houndoom with an eating disorder. I've also got an onix terrified of smaller pokemon, a rhydon with an inferiority complex, a slowpoke rescued from tail-harvesting poachers, and a sociopathic kadabra who induces psychosis in people when she doesn't get her way. Most have a sad story of abuse ... while others are just plain maladjusted. Some of these pokemon have killed other 'mons, or even humans. In fact, I'm ... sorta _legally required_ to tell you which ones (lookin' at you, psycho spoon bitch!)

Most of these pokemon will recover in time. Others ... well, it's possible they'll never find their forever home. But I will never give up on them, as long as they're with me. I've got the skills, the experience, and the stubbornness to prove it! Now, I've rehabilitated everything from abandoned pikachu to ultra-rare latios. But imagine my surprise when I got a call from Saffron City's Pokemon Shelter about a pokemon all the way from the Alola region.

"A salazzle? In Saffron? Are you serious?" I frowned. This salazzle couldn't be released. It's a felony to release non-native pokemon species into the wild: invasive species destabilize the ecosystem. Rehabilitation was the only option for this lizard.

"It was brought back from Akala Island by a tourist. She caught it as a gift for her fiancé. Take a guess what happened."

"Oh hell ... the pheromones."

"Yup. Two months later, the bride-to-be canceled their wedding and dumped the lizard here. So when can you pick her up? She's a real piece of work ... the staff's afraid to go near her."

I blinked. "What? Why?"

"She's already escaped twice. Used her pheromones to get staff members to open up all the doors. Derrick's still messed up in the head. We had to lock him in the broom closet."

"Are you serious? You literally have someone locked in the broom closet right now."

"Hun, you have no idea ..."

"Damn … okay, I'll be there first thing tomorrow."

"The sooner the better. And Riley?"

"Yeah?"

"Be careful with this one. I mean it."

"I will," I said, and hung up.

A salazzle ... those bipedal lizards from the Alola region. Fire and poison typed. Capable of producing powerful, intoxicating pheromones. I didn't know much else, except what I had heard in passing. You know what they say about salazzle owners: they're surrounded by this pervasive stigma. "What's he doing with that salazzle?" people whisper. "Is he one of _those_ trainers?" It's like when you spot a young trainer with a female gardevoir or lopunny and they're acting just a little _too _affectionate in public. Nobody ever talks about it. But _everybody _knows what's going on.

Salazzle trainers are just one of those things that people will always gossip about. I remember last year when that older trainer beat the Alolan Champion using a salazzle and became an overnight celebrity. It took less than a week before one of those sleazy tabloid magazines ran a story called "The new Alolan Champion and their salazzle ... who's training _who_?"

But I needed more than gossip and hearsay: I had research to do. I spent the night reading up on everything about salazzles: their abilities, natural habitat, dietary needs, behavior and temperament, health issues, their danger index ... _everything_.

I was shocked by what I found.

Did you know that salazzle are gray-listed in most regions? Yeah, each region's Pokemon League has a standardized list of pokemon that novice trainers can't own. Now, it_ should be _common sense to not give a preschooler a slug made of fire or a living ball of pressurised poison gas, but the list exists for a reason: people are dumb. Most gray-listed pokemon are inherently dangerous, or too headstrong for novice trainers. Then there's salazzle.

Salazzle is gray-listed because it is one of the few pokemon that can control their masters.

Sure, there's other pokemon that can manipulate human minds, like gardevoir or lucario. But those tend to be fiercely loyal and obedient. Salazzle, in sharp contrast, revel in trickery and mischief. They're clever, shrewd, and accustomed to getting their own way. If you don't give them what they want, they'll ... convince you.

To call salazzle manipulative is an understatement, much like saying slowpoke are dimwitted or pikachu are over-bred. Wild salazzle spend their _entire lives_ getting other pokemon to do their bidding. The very notion of manual labor is so foreign to them that they do not know how to hunt or forage or find shelter, and would likely die on their own. Manipulation is all they know. In fact, PokepediaOnline says they're one of the few non-dark-type pokemon that must be taught how to ask for things, because their first instinct is to take it through coercion.

It's those pheromones ... salazzle and its pre-evolution secrete an oily substance from their tails that can be burnt to produce toxic gas. The oil from females are heavily-laced with powerful pheromones that can affect all manner of pokemon, and humans, too. Its attractive qualities are so well-known that salazzle oil is an additive of perfumes and aphrodisiacs. Alolan scientists are frantically researching possible medical and therapeutic uses. Kalosian chefs will sometimes use salazzle pheromones as a cooking ingredient. PokeWorld News ran a story last year about the International Police cracking down on a Team Rocket pheromone smuggling ring in Fuschia City. I never knew about _any _of this until now!

Alolan folk say that it's musky and spicy and sweet, like burnt garlic and caramelized onions. Supposedly, it fills the victim with an overpowering, trance-like state. Their oxytocin levels shoot up, and so does their libido. The whole world and all its troubles become inconsequential; victims become so consumed by love and adoration for the salazzle that they'll do practically _anything _for them. Side effects induce nausea, vertigo, disorientation, and ataxia ... whatever _that_ means. I'm just repeating what PokeMedOnline says.

There had to be _something _I could do about the pheromones. I tried looking up if there was a cure. But the internet had nothing but rumors and questionable home remedies, like breathing through a urine-soaked rag … and there's no way I was trying _that_. I needed special tools for this job: I reached for my phone, and looked up the number on the internet. I knew it was late, and was relieved that someone picked up.

I heard the voice of a cute girl. "This is Fuschia City Gym. Janine, speaking. May I help you?"

"Hey there. The name's Riley, I'm a Pokemon Rehabilitator over in Saffron City. Do you sell specialized gear for training poison types?"

"Sure do! We got antidotes, herbal poultices, air purifiers, epipens, elbow-length rubber gloves, chemsuits, dozers, flubgrazers, smoke bombs, invisible walls-wait, no: sorry, those are for senior gym members only."

"I'm looking for a specific item ..." I scroll down the webpage I was browsing. "Uh, an ABEK-P3 G109?"

"Oh, we got a whole storeroom full of those! We overstock in case of emergencies. My wheezing had an accident the other day ... I had to start passing those out like halloween candy. Daddy was, like, sooooo angry. I couldn't believe it. We run a gym full of poison types ... um hellooo? These things happen all the time."

"That's ... fascinating," I manage. "Can I arrange for pickup tomorrow morning?"

"Oh, sure! It'll cost ya 4800 pokebucks."

Oof, marked up 20% from the price I found online. Oh well: I couldn't wait. "Great, I'll have a pidgeotto stop by with the cash. She'll respond to 'Rey'."

I said goodbye and set the phone down, convinced I had this lizard gig down.

I read salazzle articles until I passed out. My sleep was restless, with fleeting dreams. I woke up to the blaring of my alarm clock and groggily stumbled into the shower. Today was a big day - a salazzle day. I better hurry: it sounded like the Pokemon Shelter couldn't wait to get rid of her.

My lucario poked his nose into the bathroom._ "Master, you are awake."_

His deep, solemn voice was in my head, unspoken and silent ... yet still having sound. Telepathy is never not weird. "Morning, Rufio. You hungry, lil buddy?"

_"I have already fed myself. Must you accept the Demon Lizard into your care?"_

I laughed as I frantically scrubbed my armpits. "You can't call her that, Ruf. I'm sure she's ..." I struggle for a fitting complement. "Very friendly."

_"She is a Demon Lizard who will bring ruin unto our home."_

I stuck my soapy head out of the shower curtain. "Hey, what's your problem? You haven't even met her yet."

My lucario stood cautiously at the threshold of the bathroom, one paw still on the doorknob. _"I spoke to the Angry Banana last night." _He meant Lilith, the kadabra. They don't get along._ "She said she had a Future Sight of a demon who will deliver a curse upon this house."_

I finished my shower and jumped out. Crap, I left my towel on the bedroom. I dashed by my lucario and grabbed it off the floor. "Are we forgetting that the Angry Banana is a manipulative sociopath who enjoys playing mind-games?"

Rufio followed me into the bedroom as I towelled off. _"No, but I sensed her aura when she spoke. I felt ... unease."_

I froze: his words sent heebie-jeebies up my spine. But I forced a smile. "Well, I'll have to be extra careful, then." I grabbed the nearest clothes I saw and threw them on. "Listen, I gotta run – I promised the shelter I'd be there first thing in the morning. So do me a favor: open the backyard, let the crew out of their pokeballs, and feed them. Remember, only a half-scoop of pokechow for the houndoom. And keep the persian away from the sandshrew brothers! I caught them fighting again. Oh, and give Rey this:" I shoved an envelope in Rufio's paws. "The featherhead's got an errand to run in Fuschia City. She'll know what to do."

Rufio bowed his head. _"It will be done, Master."_

I gave my lucario a rough pat on the head as I rushed into the kitchen. "What would I do without you, Ruf?"

Rufio placed my wallet on the counter. I had forgotten it, like I usually do. _"You would cry into your pillow like a pathetic cubone." _

I laughed, grabbing the wallet and a sitrus berry from the fridge. "Gonna pretend that was a joke. Later, buddy!" With the berry stuffed in my mouth, I dashed out the house. In a flash I'm on my bike.

I pedaled downtown as berry juice dribbled down my chin, tracing the familiar route to the shelter as SilphCo's tower loomed in the distance. I couldn't get my lucario's words out of my head. It's probably nothing, I told myself. The kadabra's just trying to rile me up again. I'm a professional when it comes to handling difficult pokemon – the best I know. I've tamed pokemon that could level buildings in one blow, or short-circuit brains with a mere thought. How bad can one salazzle be?

Well ... pretty bad, now that I thought about it.

I read story last night about an Alolan construction worker who stopped showing up to work one day. Two weeks later, he was caught stealing food from the local 'mart, but escaped by overpowering the police officer. They found him deep in the Akala Island wilderness, enslaved by the fattest wild salazzle ever seen. Poor guy was living like a savage among two dozen enslaved pokemon. He had even built a shrine for her out of rocks and driftwood. They had stolen so much food it was rotting, but he and all the other pokemon were starving because she wouldn't let them eat. They did a case study about him in _Pokemon Behavior_. I read every word: it was _fascinating_. How could pheromones be _that _strong?

Most folk are terrified of the notion of being enslaved by a pokemon ... yet there's a few that find it appealing, if the internet is to believed. Salazzle are _– ahem – _rather popular on certain websites ... that's, uh, just what I've heard. I've never looked, honest! I've also heard the rumor that salazzles are always horny. Supposedly it's because in the wild, they use sex to control their harem of enslaved males. Take a pokemon used to keeping pace with a dozen horny males, and put her in a room with one trainer, and things can get weird.

You can ask any salazzle owner about their powers of seduction, and their reaction is nearly universal. Some might go uncomfortably quiet, or force a half-hearted laugh. "Yeah, she can be pretty feisty sometimes ..." they'll say. Or they'll get defensive and say "I keep her pokeball close in case she needs a 'time out'." Now, maybe they're good enough trainers to not let the lizard win. Or maybe they've already fallen under her spell. But whatever their case, they_ all_ know.

The internet is overflowing with forum posts by concerned salazzle trainers unsure of how to deal with their pokemon's "problem". I found stories of salazzles self-pleasuring in public, hiding their pokeball in lewd places, or relentlessly harassing their trainers and other pokemon. To combat this, a few trainers have shamefully admitted to buying certain "toys" to keep their salazzles busy. I couldn't believe it. I mean ... how bad does it get before you seriously consider buying a vibrator for a pokemon? Imagine taking a girl home and she spots it, and then you have to calmly explain that you don't actually _like_ putting things up your butt ... you bought it because your pokemon's an insatiable horndog who won't stop stealing your electric toothbrush.

I arrived at the Pokemon Shelter, signed for her, and Millie – my favorite shelter nurse – brought out a pristine ebony-and-gold embossed Luxury Ball. Ooh, shiny! "She got a name?"

"No. But the staff have been calling her Tryst."

I snorted out a laugh. That poor bride-to-be ... "She's clean, right? No parasites, pokerus, Alolan fever?"

"She's clean, fed, and groomed. Now remember: don't take her out until you're in a controlled environment," the Millie warned.

"I know the drill," I muttered as I filled out the forms. "Done this a hundred times."

"And don't get cocky."

I chuckled. "C'mon, Millie, it's _me_. You know I'm the best."

"You haven't seen what she did to Derrick."

My eyes glanced up at the older woman. She was stone-faced. "It's just pheromones ... how bad can it be?"

"He was screaming that we took him from the love of his life."

I laughed. "Well, I'm not that dumb, Millie. Besides, my heart already heart belongs to you."

"Ha. I've heard that line from men far richer – and more suave – than you, and I ain't falling for it now."

"I'm serious! You've won me over with those those ravishing silver locks of hair, and a winning smile from that new set of dentures, and a tender gaze that says 'I have framed photos of eighteen different cat pokemon at home'."

"I only got five." She shoved the ball in my hands. "Now take her and get out."

"You're a peach, Mil. Thanks a bunch."

Millie let herself show a smile. "Yeah, yeah ..."

As I walked out of the shelter, I could feel Tryst's ball jiggling in my hands. The lizard knew something was going on and wanted out. Fiesty little bugger ...

I biked home with her ball still wiggling on my belt clip. I talked to Rufio once, about what it's like being inside a pokeball. He described it like being stuck in the moment between a deep sleep and a restful wake. You're peaceful, dimly conscious, and have little sense of your body. You can hear your trainer's voice as a distant mumble, or feel the gentle jostle of their belt clip as they walk. You could be in there for a minute, hour, or a day ... and you'd never really know how long it was until you came back out.

I had always liked the way he described it ... pokeballs sounded so comfortable and cozy. But pokeballs don't work on humans, nor any animals or plants. I've heard it explained like this: pokemon are creatures of energy. That energy lets them perform amazing feats like breathing fire or spouting water ... and long ago we learned how to capture this energy into a small, transportable matrix called a pokeball. There's a dozen different theories on the whys and hows, but that stuff is better left to the scientists. All I know is that it works.

When I got home, two bird pokemon were waiting for me in the training room. Creo always knew when it was time for flying lessons. This beautiful, gentle pidegeot was blinded by his trainer for losing too many battles. When I first got Creo, his confidence was so shattered he spent every day in one spot, too afraid to move ... let alone fly. Rey has become his seeing-eye bird, and the two are very close. Creo will probably never find a forever home ... but he'll always be welcome here.

Rey stood proudly next to the package from Fuchsia City Gym. "Nice job, Rey," I patted the pidgeotto on the head and gave her a treat. "But I got bad news for you two. We gotta cancel flying lessons. I got a new pokemon today, and she's gotta have her first session."

Creo cocked his head. His long feathered headdress bobbed. "Crrruku?"

I cradled his head in my hands and ruffled his cheek feathers. "We'll pick back up tomorrow, okay, big guy?"

Creo's poofy feathers deflated like a balloon. Awww, the poor bird was heartbroken! I gave him a big hug, and the bird pokemon flapped his wings and crooned in my embrace. "Alright, featherhead, I'll tell you what: we'll go out to Route 7 after dinner and do some flying, okay? Now let's get you two outta here: you'll scare the newcomer."

Rufio opened the safety gate with a loud clang, and Creo navigated the exit by sound. The _real _reason I couldn't have birds here was that there's no sense in putting a salazzle near potential slaves. Once it was just me and the lucario, I pressed the button on her Luxury Ball. The spring latch opened, a brief flash of light lit the room, and the salazzle materialized.

Wow, these lizard were pretty! Standing at three feet tall, Tryst's scales were colored like the night sky, but her chest and belly were blazingly bright with indigo and hot pink stripes, patterned like a flame. Her palms and soles were also bright pink, and they drew attention with her every move. Her large, violet eyes were shockingly feminine, with large lashes: an odd trait for a lizard. She stood with snout held high, encapsulating the proud, confident poise of a queen. She didn't look surprised to see a new human before her.

"Hey there ... my name's Riley, and this is Rufio. I'm your new trainer!" Tryst ignored me. She sniffed the room, taking in the smells of all the other pokemon. I let her do her thing for a while: it's important that new pokemon feel comfortable.

Most trainers' number one mistake is they assume pokemon think like people do. Pokemon are complex creatures with unfamiliar and sometimes bizarre behaviors ... like how arcanines will mount each other to show dominance: a necessary social behavior that many embarrassed trainers might ignorantly discourage. Some pokemon are harder than others to read, but master-class trainers such as myself can learn a lot from the smallest cues. Right now, this salazzle was moving fluidly as she explored my training room, which meant she was relaxed and comfortable. If she were anxious or afraid, she'd stand still as a statue.

When the lizard seemed ready, I continued on with my introduction speech. It's just standard stuff, really ... I let her know what I do, why she's here, and how we're going to train. I've always believed that trainers should treat pokemon like partners, not pets. Many of them are smart enough to know when they're being talked down to, even if they don't understand every word.

Rufio relayed the house rules to the salazzle in terms she could understand. Her head twisted in the lucario's direction. The salazzle hissed and growled out a terse question of some sort.

Rufio turned to me. "_The Demon Lizard demands to be released."_

I pursed my lips. "Tell her that will happen eventually if she cooperates."

Tryst avoided eye contact as I talked. This was a power move: she deliberately wasn't giving me her attention, and that irked me. When she came to the safety gate, she rattled it, then tried to squeeze through the gaps.

I sighed. "Rufio?"

My lucario bowed his head. _"At once, Master."_

As Rufio approached, Tryst swiped at him with her claws. He held his paws out to placate her. The two pokemon conversed. I didn't know what Rufio was telling her, but I trusted him: he's good at figuring out how to calm other pokemon down. The four aura-sensing stalks on the back of his head stiffened and twitched.

But Tryst wasn't backing down. She snapped her jaws at him and went back to trying to open the gate. Rufio laid a gentle paw on her shoulder. She lashed out again. Rufio staggered back, clutching his snout. My grip of her pokeball tightened, but I did nothing. If I approached her now, it would just make her feel threatened and outnumbered. Rufio was trying his best, but the salazzle was beyond reasoning. She jumped back into the corner and got down on all fours. Her tail raised high, she swayed it back and forth, producing a purple mist.

I swore. "Ruf, stop her."

My lucario looked to me. _"Master, it is unlike you to resort to violence so quickly."_

"You don't know what she can do," I growled. "Stop her!"

Rufio dashed forward, paws up in a fighting stance. But Tryst was ready. She had inhaled a great deal of the purple mist, and she blew it right in my lucario's face. Rufio stopped dead in his tracks. He grabbed his forehead, looking confused.

"Rufio?"

The salazzle growled playfully. I saw a glint in her eyes as she drew him in and ... locked jaws for a deep, sensuous kiss. Ugh, gross! Where did she even learn how to kiss like _that_!? On second thought, I don't want to know ...

"Hey!" I raised the salazzle's ball in warning. "Stop that, or you're going back in your ball!"

Rufio struggled weakly in her embrace. He snorted out a puff of purple gas through his nose. Tyst pulled away from the kiss slowly. I nearly gagged at the sight of her withdrawing her tongue from his mouth. She spread her long fingers through his chest fur. My pokemon looked to be in a trance. "Last warning, Tryst ... get away from him!"

Looking at me, the salazzle whispered something in my lucario's ear. He nodded.

"Arceus ... enough!" I activated Tryst's pokeball and whisked the lizard back inside.

"That went well," I muttered. "Ruf? You okay, lil buddy?"

My lucario shuddered. He clutched his head and staggered forward to lean against the wall. _"Master ..." _He turned to me, his eyes cold and expressionless. _"Give me her pokeball."_

A chill ran down my spine. Time seemed to stand still for a moment as I processed what the lizard had just done. Tryst had played a classic gambit: corrupt Rufio now, get punished for it ... then bet on her new slave to get her out of trouble. I was almost impressed.

Rufio held his paws out._ "Master ... her pokeball."_

"Don't fall for it, Rufio."

My lucario growled. _"The Mistress told me that if you put her in her ball, I must let her back out."_

"What did you just call her!?"

_"The Mistress ... my Mistress."_

"Ruf, she's in your head. Don't let her control you."

_"I must let her out. I have to let her out!"_

Uh oh.

Rufio grabbed hold of my shirt. I held her ball high, out of his reach. "Woah, woah, snap out of it, Ruf!" I tried to hold him back, but the little blue fuzzball's always had surprising strength. He climbed up me with ease.

I managed to wedge an elbow between him and pushed him off. He tumbled to the ground, glaring at me with an anger I've never seen before. _"She told me to let her out. I need to let her out!"_

The fighting pokemon sprung to his feet and delivered a roundhouse kick to my gut. I felt the air forced out my lungs and doubled over. He pounced on me, snarling, paws grabbing at the ball. Gasping for breath like a magikarp, it was all I could do to clutch the pokeball close to my chest. We tumbled to the floor. Rufio started prying my fingers away from the salazzle's ball. Arceus, he was pulling hard enough to break them! I curled my legs up and got one foot against his shoulders. And I pushed with all my might.

"Get ... offa ... me!"

I felt Rufio's grip slip, and he went flying. So did the ball. My lucario pounced for it, but the ball bounced out of his paws. I scooped it up and bolted for the gate. I had to put Rufio into his pokeball! But where was it? I hadn't used that thing in months!

I was halfway outside when my lucario pounced on my back. Snarling, he sunk his teeth into my neck. I yelped in pain, we tumbled to the ground. His chest spike dug into my back. He grabbed my hand that had the ball and bit that, too. I screamed, but refused to let go. Reaching behind his neck with my other hand, I grabbed one of his aura-sensing stalks.

"Sorry, buddy." I squeezed with all my might.

Rufio screeched, his whole body went rigid. There's so many nerves in those things that I might as well kicked him in the balls. His howls reached the outside, and I heard the cries of alarmed pokemon. Lily the Ivysaur was the first to come running, followed quickly by a dozen other pokemon.

I struggle to get the thrashing lucario off of me. "Get him offa me! He's gone crazy!"

The ivysaur's vines shot out, grabbing Rufio by the arms. He was tackled by the sandshrew brothers, shocked by the pikachu, and finally sat on by the rhydon. I scrambled to my feet and limped to the bedroom. As I tore through drawers and shelves, I could still hear him broadcasting his thoughts. _"I have to let her out! I need to let her out!"_

I finally found his ball and returned to the hallway. I chucked his ball at him, he was pulled inside, and the screaming in my mind stopped. I stood there, panting, and checked my bites. Arceus, Rufio actually drew blood! I had a crowd of twenty or so pokemon staring at me with a mixture of confusion and fright. "Just a new pokemon in the house, that's all ..." I gestured in exasperation. "Nothin' to see ... go on, back outside, all of you!"

I returned to the training room, slammed the safety gate shut, and plopped myself down on a stool. I was in shock of what just happened.

That damn lizard ... I had no idea these pheromones were so powerful!

Wait, no.

That's not _true_.

I spent all night reading about them. I had the knowledge, I knew what they could do. It's just ... I didn't _respect _that knowledge. I couldn't help it: I found those stories so hard to believe. I kept thinking that maybe they're exaggerating. Or the trainers were just stupid and blamed the pheromones on poor training. But it's another thing to see it with my own eyes. Arceus, Rufio turned on me so quickly! My own pokemon, the lucario who would follow me to the ends of the earth ... he _attacked _me.

Tryst's ball jiggled in my hands. The lizard was antsy. She wanted out.

I paced in the training room, thinking hard. I couldn't proceed without a plan. For years, Rufio has always been at my side during therapy: calming pokemon down, talking to them, making them feel accepted and secure. But if I couldn't trust Ruf, I couldn't trust _anyone_. I'd have to work solo. Go back to the basics of obedience commands and treat-based rewards. It'll be like the old days of taming wild rattatas as a kid.

It's gonna be weird going back to that. It'll feel archaic and backwards. But Tryst will have to use the pheromones on _me_. And if she does ...

I ripped open the package from Fuschia City Gym and took out my newest toy. The G109 toxic gas mask is a classic Silph Co. design, engineered to resist all poisons native to the Kanto-Johto area. It's got a purple emblem of a koffing's markings on the sides ... pretty slick looking! I read the instructions, slipped it on, and tightened the straps.

... ugh, it's hard to breathe in this thing. I'll let it hang around my neck for now.

I pressed the button on Tryst's pokeball. She appeared before me, head held high in a smug expression. Her self-satisfied look told me that she heard the whole fight with Rufio, and she was _proud_ of it. Oh, what a bitch! That made my blood boil.

"Okay, firstly: you're a dick. Secondly, I'm not letting you near any other pokemon until you behave. Thirdly, you'll apologize to Rufio later. Understand?"

I didn't expect her to. The lizard hadn't spent long under the care of humans, and probably knew only a handful of words. But I didn't care; she'd apologize one way or another. She made me hurt my lucario. That made it personal.

However ... I knew I couldn't lose my cool. I'm a professional, after all. "Now, I don't expect you to like it, but you're stuck with me now, for better or worse. And once you get the hang of it, you'll find me very easy-going. Let's start with a simple trust exercise, okay?"

I have a mantra when it comes to pokemon training: Trust leads to Respect; Respect leads to Obedience. It's practically my trademarked saying: I even got it printed out on a banner hanging above the training room. You must earn one to begin working on the other ... too often, bad trainers will try to force obedience without first earing their pokemon's trust and respect, and that's where problems begin. Establishing trust was the foundation of pokemon training. You'll hear that fact regurgitated at any trainer's school, read it in any pokemon training manual. But it's true. And the best way to establish trust is positive reinforcement.

I palmed a piece of a pokepuff and held it up to get her attention. "See this? Mmm, yummy treat!" I brought it to her nose and let her sniff it. The salazzle snapped her jaws at it, nearly taking off a finger! I pulled away. "Ah-ah! You'll get this if you behave, okay?"

Tryst lunged forward, forcing me to keep the puff behind my back. "Woah, woah, calm down." I played keepaway for a while. The claws on her long fingers scratched my forearms, but I didn't rebuke her. I knew it was only a matter of time: most pokemon will give up, eventually. Then I ask them to sit, and would reward them with a bite. It's super basic stuff, really ... but it is crucial to establish that obeying a trainer leads to rewards.

Except ... Tryst wasn't calming down. She fought for the treat in my hands, and no amount of pushing her away or saying no got her to back off. Growling, she pounced on my back, scrambling all over me for the treat in my hands. Her claws tore the front of my shirt open. I felt raking pain across my chest. I fought not to rebuke her.

"Hey! Get down!" I shoved the lizard off of me. Tryst came to a rolling stop and was slow to get up. She glared at me. Her tail began to wag. Oh, for Arceus' sake ... this was going horribly.

"Oh, no you don't!" I lunge for her, grabbing her tail by the tip. "No. You don't get food if you use pheromones."

Snarling, Tryst chomped my forearm and scurried away when I yelped in pain. She began to sway her hips, building up more of her noxious gas. I could already smell it: overpoweringly skunky and spicy, but with a twinge of sweetness. Like ... burnt garlic and caramelized onions. I quickly put my gas mask on.

No sooner than I tightened the straps did Tryst inhale a cloud of the gas and blow it in my face. The purple mist billowed against the plexiglass visor. She waited for a reaction.

"Nice try, but I'm immune," I said. It came out more like "Ncss trr, dut m mme." ... close enough.

Tryst cocked her head. She tried again. No effect!

I'm not going to lie: after seeing how easily she corrupted Rufio, I was enjoying this moment. The damn lizard needed to learn that she couldn't push me around so easily.

Tryst growled at me. She spun and slammed me with her tail. I staggered back, clenching my gut. Damn, that hurt! "Ah ah ah!" I held up her luxury ball, and the lizard froze. "Thts rght ...nw bck ff, r uu go n ur bull!"

Tryst circled me. The lizard's mind was turning, working over the situation. She was plotting something, but I didn't know what. She was never trained by her previous owner, and was practically a wild animal. What could she possibly do to outwit me?

"Nw Trst," I began. "Colm dwn, nd w'll wurk n ur trning."

The salazzle stood up and opened her mouth. She began a gross retching sound from the back of her throat. And then she spewed a wad of purple gunk right in my face. I was blinded, but otherwise felt fine. I laughed.

"Is tht ull uu got, lzurd?"

But then I heard a hissing sound. I smelled something funny. And an icy pit formed in my stomach as I realized I failed to account for one teeny weenie itsy bitsy tiny little detail.

Every pokemon has innate abilities. Some are pretty nifty, like meowth's ability to find dropped items and gift them to their trainer. Others are very powerful, like pikachu's static allows it to paralyze an opponent on contact. Then there's salazzle, which has a unique ability shared with no other pokemon in the world. Salazzle's ability is called "corrosion." Their poison can eat through _anything_. In the wild, this ability lets them prey upon the steel-typed alolan sandshrew.

And it's also why_ my gas mask was melting._

I tore the gas mask off my face as the rubber bubbled and dissolved. I could already smell the pheromones. So musky, so sickly-sweet. Panic clawed at my psyche. Arceus, what should I do? This damn lizard took away my lucario, took away my gas mask ... I was losing control of the situation ...

I_ couldn't _lose control of the situation.

As soon as I reached for Tryst's Luxury Ball, she pounced, knocking me to the floor. The ball rolled out of my hands. Tryst scrambled on top of me and coughed a cloud of noxious perfume in my face. I coughed as the thick gas got in my lungs. I threw her off. She tumbled and rolled to the ground. My eyes began to water, my mind felt fuzzy ... damn this lizard! Tryst's eyes zeroed in on her ball, behind me. She scrambled for it on all fours, surprisingly fast.

"No!" I twisted my body and kicked off the ground, launching myself. We collided, my head slammed against hers. I pushed her off of me, she tail slapped me in the face and scooped the ball up. I dove for her, and brought her down with me. I got a hand on her ball and pulled. This salazzle did not have the dense muscles of a fighting-type, like my lucario. Her grip was slipping, her claws scratching the enabled coating.

And then ...

And then ...

And then I turned my head. We locked eyes, and I saw the intense desire in them ... I saw how much she wanted her ball.

No ... I saw how much she wanted _me_.

And I realized how _happy _she'd be if I gave her the ball.

I didn't want to. But ... those shocking effeminate purple eyes, so full of wanton, carnal desire ... she wanted it. She wanted her ball more than me. So logically, that meant ... she should have it. Yes ... I wanted her to have it.

I loosened my grip of her ball. Tryst hopped in the air, squealing in victory. Now she controlled her own pokeball: she alone was the master of her fate.

And I blinked, realizing what an absolutely _terrible_ idea that was.

I tackled her. Hissing, she scratched me all over with her foot claws, shredding my shirt to ribbons. I grimaced and bore the hot pain of the scratches, tearing the pokeball from her slender fingers. It popped from our grip, rolling across the floor.

Tryst tried to shove me away. I pounced on her. We hit the ground hard, knocking the air out of her lungs with a grunt. I flipped her on her back, pinned her arms above her head. The salazzle struggled under the weight of my body. She squirmed and thrashed. But I knew she couldn't throw me off. She did, too. A deep growl welled in her throat.

"Gotcha!" I yelled, triumphant. "See, I'm not as easy as a pokemon."

Tryst's eyes narrowed ... and I noticed a sort of smirk on her face. Her body relaxed. Her hind legs wrapped around my hips.

My eyes opened wide. "Wait ..."

I felt her long, muscular tail snake around one of my legs. Her thighs squeezed me tight against her. And I realized the crotch of my pants were ... growing awfully tight.

"Aaah! Gross!" I pushed away, rising to my knees. Tryst came with me, having wrapped her arms around my chest. I tried to peel her off of me. "Get off, get off!"

We fought and struggled, but I couldn't get the salazzle to let go. I had two limbs to her five! I tried to stand, but the tail around my leg threw my balance off. I fell back down, and I was right back where I started: the salazzle on her back, with me on top. Tryst clung close to me. Her hips grinded against mine. My mind was muddled, swimming in a pheromone-fueled haze. I felt my resistance slipping. _Just give the lizard what she wants ... she's beautiful ... she deserves it ..._

"Stop it!" I mustered, half-heartedly trying to push her away. "You're a ... pokemon. It's wrong. We can't ..."

Oh, but we _could_. She wanted me. This beautiful, perfect pokemon actually wanted _me_! Her covetous gaze ... so mesmerizing. So flattering. I could stare into her eyes forever. Tryst leaned in, her throat churring softly. She ran her muzzle across my cheek. Her hot tongue lashed out, tasting my skin and giving me goosebumps. And then she pressed the tip of her snout to my lips. I was about to kiss a pokemon. Somewhere, in the back of my mind, the notion disgusted me. But I didn't want to stop. Her mouth opened, pressed against mine. Her tongue danced on my lips. I felt warm. So incredibly warm.

No, I felt more than warm ... I felt hot.

_Very hot!_

"Aaah!" I reared back as the flames coming off her spine curled around her body. Cackling, Tryst scurried out from under me. My shirt was on fire! It was so thoroughly shredded that it was easier to just rip off. Where's my fire extinguisher!? It's mounted on the wall! I scrambled for it and sprayed the white fog all over the floor.

During those short few seconds, Tryst nabbed her Luxury Ball. She moved for the gate and slammed into it. It's just a simple child-proof lock, not meant to withstand force. On the third charge, it broke open, and the salazzle was now loose in my house.

I finally got the fire out. Now, time to get that damn lizard. I whirled around and–

I fell on my butt. I couldn't find my balance, the room was spinning. That's when I noticed my nostrils burning from a _new _smell, like charred rubber and grease. I remembered that the gasses that salazzle emit become toxic when ignited. The damn lizard poisoned me!

"I'm gonna kill her," I muttered. "Then I'm gonna use a max revive on her. And then I'm gonna kill her again."

Gotta get to the medicine cabinet. It's in the corner, but even that seemed like an insurmountable distance. I crawled along the floor, then struggled to my feet, clinging to the wall. I flung the cabinet door open and rummaged through my supplies, letting potions and ethers fall to the ground in my haste. Aha, there's an antidote. But before I used it, I should get rid of all the gas, or I'll just get poisoned again. I unlocked the windows and threw them open. That's when I heard the commotion. I stuck my head out to get a better look.

Tryst was already in the backyard, captivating my rescue pokemon. The ones she affected were going crazy, as if she told them to destroy everything they see.

"No ... no no no no!" I stumbled out of the training room, antidote in hand.

...

Well, it took a while, but we're finally back to where my story started. Now picture me back in my living room, dazed and horrified at the score of entranced pokemon running amok. I tried pulling the pikachu away from the TV cord, and the little bastard shocked me. The mankeys, too, fought and struggled if I picked them up. Tryst was not content to merely escape: the damn lizard had decided to create as much mayhem as possible before she left. What a bitch! I was so angry at her!

But the fight wasn't over. I still had my wits. My skills. And my pokemon know-how.

First things first: I sprayed the antidote in my face, coughing as the astringent aerosol reached my lungs. Then I grabbed the fire extinguisher and put out the carpet fire. Next was the worst part: I had to ask Lilith for help.

I braved past the raging pokemon and crossed into the kitchen. The kadabra was there, floating cross-legged, surrounded by a shell of twisting, tumbling spoons. Just being near her gave me a headache.

"Lilith! Did Tryst get to you, too?"

The kadabra's whiskers flinched.Lilith's telepathic voice resonated in my mind. _"Hush."_

"Lilith, It's impor–"

_"I require hushes, human. I am meditating."_

I swung at her, knocking the spoons out of their orbit. Silverware went flying everywhere. "Fuck your meditation, I need your help: it's an emergency."

I know it seems like I was just impatient from the developing crisis, but trust me: I was _deliberately _being an asshole. Every pokemon requires a different behavioral approach. Some, like Lilith, will walk all over you if you show any weakness.

The kadabra sighed in displeasure. The remaining spoons clattered to the floor ... except _her_ spoon: that tarnished, worn silver spoon returned to her hand. Her eyes opened slowly. "_Your childish tantrum displeases me. Take your face ... your whole face, and shut it up."_

I reached forward and grabbed the kadabra by her scrawny little neck. "You're gonna help me, or I'll take your spoon away."

Lilith grinned. Using her telekinesis, she forced my hand open, _"Pathetic human! Try it. I'll fry your brain like a waffle!"_

A pulse of psychic energy hit me like a truck. I staggered back, and tried not to show just how much pain I was in. "Arceus, I don't have time for your bullshit! Just ... help ... me ..."

Lilith's power radiated off her in waves. _"Submit to me, human," _the kadabra jeered. _"Bow to your superior."_

It felt like my mind was turning to pudding. My ears rang, my senses were knocked out of whack. My hands gripped the counter so hard that my knuckles turned white. It took every ounce of my willpower just to keep my thoughts on track. "You ... you know what murkrow are, right? Dark-typed bird pokemon from Johto, immune to psychic powers ... murkrow _love_ shiny things. They'll steal from anyone."

The kadabra's eyes opened wide, her psionic onslaught stopped. _"Your face lies."_

"I know shelters all over the Kanto-Johto area. And the magnet train to Goldenrod City is just downtown. Getting one would take me about ... a few hours, tops."

Lilith growled, her whiskers twitched. _"Typical human ... you can't do anything by yourself. Always needing a pokemon's aid ..." _She was anxiously rubbing her spoon with her thumb, compulsively polishing it.

"Imagine your precious spoon sitting in some dirty little bird's nest, covered in feathers and grime, sitting in a pile of garbage for the end of time, and there's you ... your psychic abilities useless against dark types. You'd be powerless to get it back, beaten by a stupid little bird–"

_"Silence!" _The lights flickered, the clock on the wall started turning backwards. Lilith growled in displeasure. "_Fine ... I will help you, but only if you shut up your face."_

I poked her right in the punchable little star mark on her forehead. "Hypnotize every pokemon Tryst has affected, and contain them in the backyard until I get back. That's an order."

Lilith anxiously pushed my finger away: she doesn't like her personal space being invaded. _"An easy task ... it's almost beneath me. And what of the infernal lizard face? I sense she's vacated the premises."_

"I underestimated her this time," I cracked my knuckles. "But I know just how to hit her where it hurts."

One perk about my job is that there's no shortage of pokemon on-hand. It didn't take long to assemble a team. Tracking Tryst would be easy: I had a growlithe on-hand that could follow her scent. But before I found her, I had to find her ball. It's common for resentful pokemon to hide their own pokeball. Some may even destroy it – if they're able. My guess was she buried it somewhere.

That's why I brought along a magnemite: they're naturally attracted to electromagnetic waves, including the signals that pokeballs emit. Zippy's had a rough life, bouncing between homes before being abandoned due to "destructive compulsions". Magnemite feed on electricity! Zippy's trainers were too dense to grasp that it should have been taught that computers and TVs were not okay to feed on.

The growlithe took me over my fenced yard and across a dozen neighbors' lawns. We had already left my development when the magnemite zipped over to a flowerbed in someone's backyard. It beeped energetically, bouncing up and down.

"Nice job, Zip! Rex, go check it out."

The growlithe barked in affirmation. He began digging, his poofy tail wagging excitedly. He's a good pup, but gets anxious when separated from his owners. And unfortunately for his last trainer, when he's anxious he sets things on fire. Rex came back to me with a dirt-covered Luxury Ball in his mouth. He dropped it and looked up at me expectantly, panting and grinning like the goofy pupper he was.

"Excellent job, you two!" I showered both pokemon with affection – they deserved it.

I examined Tryst's ball. The once-beautiful charcoal and gold enamel was thoroughly scratched and covered in tooth marks, and the locking mechanism was broken: the hinges swung freely and wouldn't close. Which meant I couldn't put Tryst back in her ball until it's repaired. Any Pokecenter can do pokeball repair, but it will take time.

We continued on. Tryst was heading in the direction of downtown Saffron. Fortunately, Dodrios are a great choice for navigating the urban environment. Beau was relinquished by a trainer who couldn't put up with the violent squabbling of a three-headed pokemon. After taking them in, I discovered that Beau was never allowed outside to exercise, and developed self-harming behaviors to cope with the cabin fever. I swear, some people just shouldn't be allowed to own pokemon ...

I made good time riding on Beau's back, hopping fences between yards. Suddenly, Rex jumped out of my lap, and I eased Beau to a stop. We were on the grungy, poor edge of Saffron's urban district: the driveways were gravel and the yards were tiny, with merely spitting distance between houses. I was in somebody's backyard: this house had an rickety wooden deck with a rusty barbecue grill. Rex was barking at the space underneath the raised deck. I spotted Tryst between the wooden slats, hissing at the dog.

"Good job, Rex," I said, recalling the growlithe. I approached cautiously. "Tryst, I know you're probably scared. Let's get you out of there ..."

Tryst curled back into the far corner of the crawlspace and growled. I glanced to the house. No lights were on ... hopefully, no one's home. "Look, I'm not angry," I lied. "I know you already broke your ball. I just want to get you back home."

Slowly, I inched my way to the hole in the slats where she crawled through. Ugh, it was creepy under here ... with spiderwebs everywhere. I _hate _spiders. Tryst curled up in a ball, her long tail wrapped around her legs. Even looking as pissed as she was, she radiated pure, feminine beauty ...

Crap, the pheromones were still affecting me.

"Look, Tryst, maybe we got off on the wrong foot. I'm sorry. But you can't run like that. I'm here to help you. We can work together. Now, come on ..." I took one step forward.

Tryst's back ignited like a burner. She struck the ground, sending sizzling embers my way. Flaming debris burned my new shirt, singed my skin. I screamed, dropping to the ground and desperately patting out the flames. The burn heals were back home, too. Ooh, I was going to have some blisters tomorrow ...

"Arceus, do that again, and I'll–" I stopped myself. Keep your cool, Riley! I tried to think. "Such violence is unbecoming of a pokemon as ... beautiful as you."

Tryst's head shot up. She looked surprised. "You know that word? Beautiful? You've been called that word before, haven't you?." I stepped away from the hole and beckoned her. "Your last trainer called you beautiful, too. Just before he took you to bed ..." The salazzle's eyes unfocused. She seemed to be recalling a memory.

"Come on out, beautiful ... Please?"

Slowly, the lizard unfurled her limbs. She crawled forward on all fours. The way her hips moved with every step ... I wanted to feel those hips against mine. Ugh, I disgusted myself. "That's it, nice and easy ..."

Tryst pounced before I could make a move. I was knocked on my back, onto freshly-cut grass. My head hit the ground hard. I grabbed the salazzle by the waist before she could flee. She struggled, growling, as I pulled her on top of me. She slashed my new shirt, giving me new cuts. But I held steady. I wasn't trying to subdue her ... I was only trying to hold her still.

"Tryst, please ..." I half-whispered.

The lizard froze. Then seemed to remember something. Her entire demeanor changed: she relaxed, the corners of her mouth spread in a grin. She straddled me, and I once again felt my pants swell. Oh, how eager I was to feel her on top of me ...

"There we go ..." I ran a hand up her dazzling pink and gray chest. The texture of her smooth scales excited me. She pressed her hips against mine. I didn't even care anymore. My pants were painfully tight. I ran my hand to the small of her back, then moved down her tail. "I want to smell you," I whispered. "Kiss me."

Tryst laid down on me, growling softly in her throat. Her tail curled around her body as pheromones rolled off it, like smoke. Her tail tip curled under her snout. She inhaled her own scent, preparing to blow the intoxicating gas directly into my lungs with a kiss. "Yes ... that's it. Jusssst ... like ... that ..." I reached for my belt ...

And I unhooked a pokeball from its clip.

"Daisy, come out!"

Tryst flinched as the pokeball opened with a flash of light, and a slowpoke appeared. The lizard coughed out her noxious cloud at the new, unexpected threat. The gas billowed against the slowpokes face. The slowpoke blinked, completely unfazed.

It had no effect!

"Disable her pheromones! Now!"

The slowpoke's eyes flashed. A blue pulse traveled through both of us. I felt a numbing sensation wash over me, like I had been dipped in cold glue. It passed in seconds. Tryst finally squirmed out from my grip. She got down to all fours, growling at me and her new foe. Her tail swayed and shook vigorously. But this time, there was no waft of purple gas.

"What's wrong, Tryst?" I jeered, raising myself up on one elbow. "Never met a slowpoke before?"

After what happened to Rufio, I assumed that I couldn't trust other pokemon around Tryst. But Lilith was right about humans always needing pokemon's aid: I couldn't do this alone. There's _always _a pokemon for the job. I merely needed a pokemon that could block opponents from using certain moves ... a pokemon so utterly _oblivious _that it was immune to any form of attraction ... a pokemon that had a decisive advantage against a fire and poison type.

And luckily for me, there's one pokemon that fits _all _those needs.

Tryst looked down her tail in confusion. She kept trying, as if swaying her tail harder would work. Oh, I was loving every second of this. In fact, I was _cherishing _it. The look on her face was priceless! "Daisy put a mental block on you, Tryst. You literally can't remember how to spread your pheromones. Don't even bother."

Tryst realized she was running out of options. She spewed a flame burst at the slowpoke. The slowpoke shrugged off the attack with its thick, moist skin. I couldn't help but smile. Tryst turned to flee. She came face-to-face with the magnemite, who had been taken the position on my orders. Zippy buzzed angrily, blocking her exit around the house. Beau circled her, boxing her in from three sides. And Daisy ... stared blankly ahead. Now all I had to do is bring her in. I grabbed Tryst by the arm. That's game over. I had won!

"You're done, you lusty little lizard. Now, Zippy: use thunderwa–"

A deluge of ice water shocked me to my core. I sputtered and yelped, falling to my feet in surprise.

"Get off of my property, pervert!"

I wiped my dripping brow and looked up to see an old man in a ratty bathrobe on the deck of the house, an empty bucket in his hand. "The hell!? What are you–"

"I saw what you were doing with that salazzle! You sick freak!"

"But it–that wasn't–it was just a trick! A set-up to get her to–"

"As if hooligan kids smoking behind _my _prized gardenia bushes wasn't bad enough! Now I have pokefuckers trespassing on my property!"

"Old man, I was just trying to lure her into a tr–"

"Oh, you were luring her, alright! Luring her into your pants!" He turned to the back door. "Ellen! Get another bucket! This one's as stupid as he is sick!"

"Hey! that's not–it's _not _what it looked like!"

He grabbed a spatula off his barbecue and threw it at me. "Get off of my property before I call the police!"

I raised my arms to shield myself. Beau kneeled down beside me, anxiously nudging me with one its heads. I looked to my left. Tryst was gone, Zippy lay on the ground, surrounded by burning grass. Steel types can't handle fire: their metal bodies absorb all that heat energy and, well ... overheat. Daisy didn't think to stop her, naturally. Without a trainer's orders, slowpokes are as mentally active as a soap dish.

"Shit ... shit! Help me up, Beau." The dodrio ducked a head under each arm and lifted me to my feet. I hopped on his back and recalled Zippy and Daisy back to their balls. "Which way did she go?"

Beau's three heads honked and pointed off into the street. "Okay, after her!"

"Yeah, you better run!" I heard the old man yell. "And if I ever see you back here molesting pokemon again, I'll call my grandson! He's a world-class pokemon trainer, you know! Works at the Saffron Dojo! Ellen, where's my blood pressure meds? What do you mean you don't know!?"

I didn't have time to feel embarrassed over what happened ... I had to find Tryst. Damnit, I was so close! That old man ruined everything!

No ... I had to admit: I was too busy gloating to make my move. That damn lizard was still in my head!

Rex picked up her scent again, and we were once again headed closer downtown. In a few short blocks, the tightly-packed, single-story neighborhoods transitioned into tall apartment complexes, narrow streets, and chintzy corner stores. Rex traced out a convoluted, looping trail through the same empty lots and derelict streets: it seemed that Tryst couldn't decide where to go. Or maybe the growlithe had simply lost her scent. I wondered if she was scared or anxious of this unfamiliar world of concrete and neon lights. I came to a stop at a busy street corner, shivering from my soaked clothes. Throngs of people passed around me and Beau, cars and taxis honked their horns. I asked passersby if they had seen a large black lizard recently, and they shook their heads.

"Come on, Tryst ... where are you?" I muttered. Think, Riley, think: if you were her, where would you go?

Well, most pokemon would look for a safe spot to hide. Some place they can feel comfortable and secure. But why head downtown? Why not away from the city, where there's grass and trees and–

Wait. I thought back to my salazzle research. Salazzle don't live outdoors, they prefer the volcanic caves of Akala Island. And in a city, the closest thing to caves were ...

The sewers ... oh no.

Saffron's sewers had their fair share of dangers. There's rumors of mysterious pokemon lurking in the depths, like giant feraligators and such. Sometimes, burrowing onix tunnel into the system, causing cave-ins and shutting down parts of the city. And there's no shortage of toxic grimer that feed on the waste. Tryst could be in terrible danger. I had to find her fast.

I found a quiet back alley and had Zippy levitate a manhole cover for me. Things were about to get gross, but I couldn't back down now. I descended the rusty ladder, trying hard not to retch. The air down here was heavy and pungent; it clung to me like a greasy film. Thick electrical cables stretched across the ceiling, continuing on for seemingly forever. The only light sources were stray sun rays that filtered down from the gutters overhead, so I had Zippy illuminate our path.

The stench down here was nauseating, but Rex still managed to pick up her trail. We set off at once. Feral rattata prowled the narrow, slime-covered causeways. They hissed and chattered at our intrusion, but kept their distance. The murky, dirty water shimmered, indicating the presence of feeding grimer. Ugh, I'd do anything for a super repel right now ...

Rex and I traveled the causeways for a great while, passing grate-covered culverts and barren vestibules where city workers had once stored pipe for new construction. I stepped in so much filth that my shoes were ... well, I'm gonna need new ones, to say the least.

Rex ran ahead, to the next intersection. He barked excitedly. "What is it, Rex? Find her?"

_BOOM!_

A far-off blast sent a shockwave down the tunnel, hurting my eardrums and sending a compressed wave of noxious gas past me. Rex yelped and jumped back. He fell into the sewer canal with a splash and I reacted quickly, returning him to his pokeball.

"Shit, shit, shit!" I sprinted forward, following the source of the sound. I took a left ... then a right ... and arrived at a dead end, where a chained door stood.

There she was.

Curled up into the grimy, mucky corner ...covered in ash, her eyes closed, body motionless.

A pair of koffing lay before her, conked out cold. Tryst must have used fire to protect herself, and the flames ignited the methane within the koffing, causing them to explode. I rushed to her, checked her breathing. She was barely conscious. "Dammit, Tryst! You stupid lizard ... I got you, okay? You're safe now."

I pick her up. The lizard hung limp in my arms. Oh, how I wanted to throttle her, yell at her, rebuke her. I wanted to tell her that she was stupid for running away, destroying her pokeball, and jeopardizing her own safety. I wanted to punish her for making me run across the city, force me to crawl into the sewers, and get covered in filth ...

But wouldn't. At least, not now. She may be a smelly bundle of trouble that ruined my day, my clothes, and my home ... but she was hurt, and in pain. And as her trainer, her care was still my number one responsibility.

"Come on, Tryst," I said, hefting her in my arms. "I'll protect you. You're gonna be okay. Let's get you home."

The salazzle shuddered, wheezing softly. Her eyes opened. She looked up at me ...

Then she wrapped her arms around my neck.

I know it sounds cheesy and cliche ... but pokemon training is really about earning its trust. Sure, you can teach it powerful techniques for battle, feed it loads of performance enhancers, or hit the gym to improve its stats ... but a pokemon will never reach its true potential until it fully believes in its trainer. There's just something about that special bond that will make a pokemon fight harder, overcome impossible situations, and survive even the most powerful attacks. And it's not just a perception of morale, or mental toughness: a pokemon that fully trusts their trainer will even live longer, healthier lives. It's almost as if they're _designed_ to bond with humans. That mysterious power, at its core, is what make pokemon so special.

I knew I still had a long way to go with this salazzle. But I knew that the moment she decided to hold on tight, that she learned her first – and most important – lesson: you can trust your trainer.

THE END


	2. Game Theory

_Game Theory ~ A Salazzle Story_

_Disclaimer: The following events are true, but names and other details have been changed to protect the identity of those involved. Any resemblance to real pokemon trainers is coincidental. _

Riley, here. You still with me? Okay, good.

Just starting? GO READ CHAPTER ONE FIRST, YOU EGG!

It's been about a month since my first story. Where should I begin?

Tryst has settled in reasonably well. I've repaired most the damage she caused. She's stopped trying to escape, and has been somewhat receptive to behavioral training. Ever since I rescued her from the sewers, I've noticed a marked change in her attitude. She's more willing to make eye contact, more likely to sit still when I'm talking to her. And she's starting to learn how to ask for things instead of taking them by force.

It's funny: Tryst feels a need to steal her food even if it's presented to her. If I offer her a meal, she may pretend to not want it. Or she'll snatch it out of my hands before I'm ready to give it to her. Doing this gives her the illusion of control. It's honestly a little funny … but last week, she actually _waited _for me to hand her food dish before eating! So you see, she's starting to trust me. And like I've been saying: trust leads to respect; respect leads to obedience. All things considered, I feel like I'm making good progress.

But despite everything that's happened ... ugh, how do I word this?

Arceus, she's a such a little _shithead!_

I admit, few pokemon have tested my patience as much as Tryst. She stands out as a true sociopathic terror, nearly on the level of Lilith (who, by the way, has spent the last few days terrorizing me with psychic hallucinations because "it's amusing to hear me scream").

Let me recap the stunts that Tryst has pulled in just the last three weeks:

She convinced my lucario to unlock the pokechow storage and proceeded to eat until she puked. She did it again the next day, and puked again. I've since hidden the key.

She stole her Luxury Ball and convinced the onix to smash it to pieces. I transferred her to a regular pokeball and she had the onix smash that, too. We're currently on her seventh ball.

She made the rhydon give her daily back massages ... I don't even want to know where she got _that _idea from.

She convinced the sandshrew brothers to spend two days digging an expansive underground burrow for her to sleep in. She's used it exactly once.

She forced my lucario to be her personal footstool for an entire day because he called her a "walking scented candle" (that was his best insult yet).

She has used other pokemon to climb my fence, only to return with food she stole from the neighbors. I've had to apologize to them so many times.

She conspired to stage a pokemon mutiny because we were out of pokepuffs and I didn't feel like baking more.

To be fair, I've read that most salazzles are not _this_ bad. I did my research, and I found plenty of trainers with loving, loyal salazzles. But they were all caught young. That's the key: you train them up from a salandit, and they're much more well-behaved. But Tryst was caught as an adult salazzle. She survived by being the greediest, most manipulative salandit in her area, and she only evolved by hoarding extra food to fuel the evolution process. It's hard to get pokemon to un-learn the very skills that they depended on in the wild ... so I can't fault Tryst for doing what's natural to her.

But I have my limits ...

You see, I haven't started on her _sexual _shenanigans.

The damn lizard has tried to seduce me more times than I can count.

And it's not just me, either! After I pushed her away enough times, she turned her eyes to Rufio. I was not surprised when Tryst started pursuing him: they're about the same size and build. But Ruf – in typical lucario fashion – is fiercely loyal to me, and particularly resents any pokemon who makes my life miserable. So imagine how conflicted he was when Tryst began to court him. It was almost cute watching Rufio get all flustered at her advances. He'd push her away, she'd push back, they'd viciously fight, abruptly stop, then have wild make-up sex. Break, rinse, then repeat. He's getting better at resisting the pheromones, but it's only a matter of time before they overpower him.

But Rufio wasn't her only fling. Before I knew it, Tryst started making her rounds. I must admit: this salazzle was truly a pioneer of sexual experimentation. Within a few weeks she had screwed every male in my care. She even fooled around with the onix – and don't ask me how (it's not like I watched!). I tried to not let it bother me: sex, afterall, is uh ... a perfectly natural, normal thing ... for a pokemon to do ... over and over and over again.

And the worst part is, she'd always come back to me in between flings. It's like none of my pokemon can satisfy her, so she's always testing me, trying me, convincing me to have sex. It's bizzare!

I've read the stories, heard the rumors, seen the internet memes ... but I always figured they were exaggerations. Like, alakazam don't literally have an IQ of 5000, staring into a shedinja's shell won't actually steal your soul, and larvitar can't eat entire mountains. But salazzle really _are_ the promiscuous little devils that people make them out to be. However, there's a catch. Everybody knows where pokemon eggs come from ... yes, even your local pokemon daycare (_especially_ your local pokemon daycare). Sex is a natural part of life. Some pokemon have sex to procreate, while some do it for leisure, or to assert dominance, or to strengthen social bonds ...

But for a salazzle, sex is never just sex.

Nah ... sex is really about control. And salazzle are _all_ about control.

Unfortunately for me, the intricacies of salazzle sexuality isn't really something you can easily research (without finding a boatload of questionable content), so I was in the dark for this one. Initially, I had fallen into the same stupid, juvenile gawking that most other trainers would do. It was only later that I realized there was a method to her madness.

Here's the down-low on salazzle sex that no trainer's manual can tell you: salazzles will entice males only when they want something ... which make them no different from my ex-fiance (fuck you, Janice!). Once mated, the salazzle considers that pokemon marked as their slave. I know this because I've seen Tryst repeatedly sniffing her slaves to verify she's left her mark. It's only _after _this, that the salazzle will order that pokemon around. Salazzle sex, therefore, is sorta like a formal signing of a contract ... and one that's not always willingly signed!

By the time I figured this out, she had already established "contracts" with half the pokemon under my care. I was worried, but not as worried as whenever she tried to seduce me. And now that you know how salazzle sex works, you can see why I couldn't let that happen ...

I mean, there's the obvious reason: she's a pokemon. I couldn't ever _actually_ bang a pokemon. That's just so weird and gross. Well okay, maybe I've had a passing thought or two ... but I'd never actually do it! Most trainers have had a passing thought about it at one point ... it means nothing, okay? It's just that–

Ugh, she's still in your head, Riley ... cool the jets.

Sorry, even though the pheromones are long-passed out of my system, I can still remember what it _feels _like. That powerful, intoxicating urge, how it over-rides every other thought in your mind ... when it hits you, you lose all control. And you'd think you would be horrified that you're no longer in control of your own actions, but the truth is, in the moment, you just don't _care_.

But man, this wasn't even about morals, anymore. _I'm_ the human, _I'm_ her master. _I _call the shots, _not _her. I wasn't exactly keen on letting her think I was her slave: that would completely destroy the trainer-pokemon relationship I'm trying to build!

Okay okay, so maybe it's an ego, thing too ... I simply couldn't let the lizard_ win._

Anyway, where was I? Right, it's been exactly three weeks since Tryst entered my life. I sat at the table, groggily reading today's _Saffron Morning Post. _Cereal milk dribbled down my chin as I perused the articles. I heard her sneaking up behind me: her claws clicked on the kitchen floor.

"No, Tryst," I muttered.

The salazzle approached from behind. She slid her long fingers around my waist, churring softly in her throat. Her touch traveled south. I removed her fingers from my crotch.

"I said no."

She wormed her way between my legs and slithered herself up between me and the newspaper. I sighed. Tryst looked me in the eye and wiggled her hips, struggling to press her crotch against mine. She's been testing me every morning, seeing if I'm more receptive to the idea.

"The answer's still 'no'." I pushed my chair away and stood up. Tryst came with me, clutching my chest. I carried her into the living room and peeled her off of me, dropping her onto the couch. I tolerated these little tests, but only because she wasn't using her pheromones.

Tryst glared at me from the edge of the couch as I returned to the table. I glanced to Rufio, who discretely nodded at me. The lucario had been at the edge of the hallway, watching her every move. He's become awfully protective of me ever since this started.

Tryst snorted in disdain and got to her feet. She opened the back door and let herself out ... leaving the door open (I hate it when she does that). Rufio closed it and continued to monitor her through the blinds. I went back to my newspaper. There's an article here about a trainer winning a local tournament with nothing but a pichu ... whaaaat? It says here he beat a pikachu, a jigglypuff, a charizard, a greninja, an incineroar, and even a mewtwo!

_"I sense the Demon Lizard is grumpy. She has resorted to fornicating with the three-headed squabbler."_

"Mhm," I muttered, trying not ignore him. The next page had story claiming an articuno was spotted over Cerulean City ... interesting. Traditionally, articuno sightings have signaled the coming of winter. But we're in the middle of summer right now. The article suggests that we're in for a cold snap ... ugh, why do people still believe that pokemon control the weather? Nah, something must have forced this articuno out from hiding. But what? Only a seriously strong pokemon (or trainer) could do that.

_"The Demon Lizard has convinced the anxious fire dog to join. She's nursing him like a hungry mil–"_

My spoon dropped from my hand, splashing into my cereal bowl with a clatter. "Ruf, do you have to do that?"

Rufio jerked his head away from the blinds. _"What?"_

"I don't need play-by-play updates on the sex lives of my pokemon."

Rufio's aura-sensing stalks quivered. _"You ... you are uncomfortable. Is this one of those human things?"_

"Yes, it's one of those hu ... they're called _faux pas_! It's a Kalosian saying." I turned to him. "It's weird to talk about stuff like that. I don't need to know, okay?"

_"My apologies, Master."_

Sighing, I go back to my newspaper. I ruffled the pages–

The newspaper turned into an angry swarm of zubats. I screamed and fell out of my chair as they swirled around, screeching, gnashing their teeth. I landed on my tailbone. Hard. The newspaper pages fluttered to the floor. _Just _newspaper, no zubats. Somewhere in the house, out-of-sight, I heard the distinctive throaty cackling of a kadabra.

"Murkrow, Lilith!" I yelled at the top of my lungs. "I swear I'll do it!"

_"Shut up your face."_

"All it takes is a five minute phone call and a three hour train ride!"

_"You bring home a murkrow, and I will murder your face."_

I slammed my palms on the floor. "Here we go again! And where would you go if I'm dead, Lilith? Would you take your velvet sleeping pillow into the wilderness and eat rotting berries off the ground? Two days ago you threw a pokepuff in my face because it wasn't fresh out of the oven!"

I waited for a response, and when I heard nothing, I felt a moment of pride. "Yeah, that's what I thought!" I picked up the newspaper and got back in my chair. Arceus, what an entitled little prick ...

_"I heard that."_

"And get out of my head!" I yelled. The nerve of that miserable, spoon-worshiping, short-stacked, maladjusted, sociopathic, wrong-natured, poor-EV-trained bundle of misery ...

_"I heard that, too."_

"Fuck you!"

I always tell people that the best thing about being a pokemon rehabilitator is that there's never a dull moment in my life. They have no idea ...

The rest of my day proceeded as normal. I returned the onyx to the shelter. His fear of smaller pokemon was due to a crushing accident with his previous trainer. I've taught him to temper his strength and he was doing well enough to be adopted. I accepted a new pokemon, a scyther. Mr. Sword-For-Arms, shall we say ... was _enthusiastically _affectionate, and his trainer never taught him how to express that affection without causing massive bodily trauma. Ugh ... scyther are gray-listed for a reason, people!

In the afternoon, it was time for Tryst's training session. We continued basic obedience training, trust exercises, teaching her rights and wrongs ... like, don't scratch people when you don't get your way. And no scratching also means no biting. And no biting also meant no tail slams. Physical violence was a tough habit to crack.

... and I so much as caught a whiff of pheromones, she'd answer to the slowpoke. That part Tryst has leaned rather quickly. She _despises _Daisy. I have to keep them separated at all times, or she'll bully her. The damn lizard even stole Daisy's pokeball off of me before. I have to keep it hidden now. Only me and Rufio know where she's kept. Thankfully, Tryst hasn't caught on that Rufio knew, or she'll seduce the information out of him.

Tryst seemed more aloof than usual today … which was saying a lot. She kept going to the gate and trying to get out of the training room. I'd have to pick her up and put her back in the center, but she wouldn't sit still for more than a few minutes.

"What is your problem!?" I asked, exasperated.

Tryst stamped her foot down. "Rerr-k-k-k! Grnn, hsss!"

I sighed. "I don't know what that means. Work with me, Trsyt … show me what's wrong."

The lizard puffed an angry snort and looked away.

I sighed. "Fine ..." I went to the window and opened it. "Rufio!" My lucario was in the backyard, playing with the other pokemon. His long pointy ears twitched at the sound of his name. "Come inside. I need help with Tryst."

Rufio dodged my gaze. _"I do not wish to be within sniffing range of the Demon Lizard."_

"I only want you to talk to her. It'll take one minute."

_"Can you first disable her infernal stench?"_

"Just get in here! Find out what she wants."

Rufio reluctantly got to his feet. _"At once, Master."_

My lucario entered, but conspicuously stayed close to the exit. Tryst gave him the cold shoulder. The two talked. You know, I have no idea how two pokemon understand each other. They have no universal "language", yet even through growls and grunts, two pokemon can understand each other remarkably well. From what Rufio's told me, pokemon vocal communication is entirely contextual and impossible to translate. It's something they just "get".

Rufio turned to me. _"Master, the Demon Lizard is angry at you for rebuffing her advances."_

I sighed. "Are we really going to go through this again?"

_"She said that will not continue training until the consummation."_

"The what, now? What did she actually say?"

_"She did not use words, but shared a mental image of her accepting your human seed in the throes of carnal pleasure."_

I nearly dry-heaved. "Okay firstly ... never _ever _say those words again. Secondly, tell her that's not going to happen."

_"The Demon Lizard is tired of waiting for you to accept."_

"I'm not going to accept. I'll never accept."

_"She says she will not accept your not accepting."_

I hold my hands up in exasperation. "Look, I'm her trainer, Ruf. She's a pokemon. She's gotta learn that trainers and pokemon don't do ..." I gestured vaguely. "That."

_"Master, I don't think you understand."_

"No, I understand perfectly well. She's a salazzle, Ruf. A natural manipulator. I won't let her control me, and that bothers her."

Rufio dropped his gaze._ "No, Master ... this is ... a matter of ..."_

"A matter of what, Rufio?"

_"A matter of human things ... things I can't speak of."_

"For the last time, they're called _faux pas._ Just spit it out."

Rufio anxiously fidgeted with his tail. "_My grasp of human words fail me. The Demon Lizard has mated me, but I am not her mate. You are her mate. Do you not see the difference?"_

"I'm not her mate, Rufio!"

_"But Master–"_

"And this conversation is over, okay? I'm done talking about it."

Tryst grumbled something. Rufio looked to the floor. "_The more you rebuff her, the harder things will be ..."_

"Is ... is that a threat? Did she threaten me?"

Rufio avoided eye contact. _"No."_

Rufio's acting uncharacteristically flustered, and I don't know why. I tentatively sniff the air. No pheromones ... yet. I'm uncomfortable of the tension in the room, and didn't want it to escalate. "Okay, training is over. Tryst, you're done for the day. Rufio, bring in Lily and her pokeball. It's time we do some more pokeball conditioning."

_"Immediately, Master." _Rufio let Tryst and himself out. I went to the window and looked out, tapping my foot anxiously. Tryst retreated to her burrow in the backyard. That bothered me. I knew she was plotting something nasty, I just didn't know what.

The rest of my day was ruined. I went out with some friends, saw a movie, had a few drinks ... but the whole time, that conversation with Rufio was _always _lurking in the back of my mind. Even at night, when I was brushing my teeth, I couldn't stop thinking about what he meant by saying _"You are her mate."_ That was ridiculous. Tryst couldn't just "decide" that I was her mate. Humans and pokemon don't _do_ that! She had literally dozens of pokemon to romp with ... why did she have to choose me?

I spat out the toothpaste and looked at myself in the mirror. I'm tall, with a head full of dirty blond surfer hair, and in good shape from all the biking ... okay, maybe I could stand to lift a few weights. But I've got roguishly good looks, and can absolutely _rock _the 5 o'clock shadow. I'm a damn catch, alright? No wonder Tryst can't accept no for an answer!

Arceus ... maybe _that's _the very reason why: I told her "No." I was the only one who ever stood up to her, the only one who resisted her pheromones. I was "the one who got away", and she couldn't deal with that. Ugh ...

After some restless tossing and turning, I eventually fell asleep. But even in my dreams, Tryst would not leave me alone. She pursued me down labyrinthine hallways. Eventually I stopped trying to run. This salazzle was even more beautiful than in waking life. She had the hips of a goddess, and her beautiful tail swayed was like a beckoning finger. We embraced. Kissed. I could even feel her on my tongue. She climbed on top of me, she grinded her slit against my crotch. The usual disgust I felt in waking life was gone. All I felt was how pleasurable the dream was. Somewhere, far away, I felt my real body. My dick was rock-hard, tingling with pleasure. I concentrated on that sensation a little too much.

Then, pieces of the dream fell away, and I felt a bouncing weight on my hips. I opened my eyes. The salazzle was on top of me for real. Riding me. _Having sex with me._

I thrashed like a wild tauros. Her 50-pound frame went flying. She slammed against the wall. I sat up, panting, as adrenaline flowed through me. My boxers had been pulled down. My dick was so stiff that it hurt. And it felt ... wet! Areus, I was actually _inside_ of her! I wanted to throw up. I sat up, and-

Woah ... the whole room was spinning. And the air was saturated with her musky, sweet pheromones. The nausea I felt wasn't just from disgust! How long had that damn lizard been pumping my lungs full of her scent?

Tryst got to her feet. Growling, she climbed back up onto the mattress, her pink belly gliding along the covers. I could only see her outline in the darkness of night, and it terrified me. I bolted out of bed. The vertigo hit me hard: the room felt like a moving carousel. I stumbled to the bathroom and slammed the door shut. I flipped the light switch on and winced as my vision adapted to the bright lights. I heard Tryst clawing on the other side of the door.

I yanked the shower curtain open and stepped into the shower with my boxers still on. I felt so disgusting and defiled – I had to get her dirty lizard essence off of me. I lathered up and washed my crotch.

One stroke and I let out a moan. I've never felt so sensitive in my life! Even the jets of water from the showerhead felt heavenly. It didn't take long before I was jerking instead of cleaning. My mind wandered to her, what it had felt like just before I threw her off. ...

No! Bad Riley! Stop! I pulled my hand away, and was hit hard with the urge to continue. Arceus, this was torture! I couldn't get her out of my mind!

_THUMP!_

The bathroom door resonated from the slam. I screamed and slipped. My arms flailed, knocking shampoo bottles off the shelves. I caught the shower curtain as I fell, ripping it off the hooks. I landed on my hip hard and groaned in pain. Water sprayed everywhere: on the floor, on my towel, on some old issues of _Trainer's Digest_. Another slam. And another. Then ... the doorknob jiggled, and in a flash of panic I realized I hadn't locked it. I watched, paralyzed as it turned. The bolt retracted with a click. The door creaked open. Many pokemon have trouble with doorknobs. Not this one.

Clever girl.

I got to my feet, grabbing the nearby plunger for a weapon. I raised it high in the air, shaking in my grip. "G-g-get back!" I muster.

Tryst approached, her thin lizard lips stretching wide in a triumphant grin. Her hips swung with every step, her long tail swayed to and fro. I was mesmerized by that seductive little walk of hers, those beckoning haunches ...

The salazzle hesitated when the shower's first few droplets hit her scaly skin. Of course, she's a fire type. For a moment I thought I was safe. But then she surprised me, braving the warm water for the sake of earning her prize. Tryst stepped into the shower, eyes narrowing, throat churring, teeth grinning with that oh-so-smug expression of victory. Was this really going to end like this? Was she finally going to win?

It's game over, man … game over!

I let out a tiny whimper. "Get back ... please?"

Tryst wrapped her long, slender fingers around my erection. The plunger dropped from my hands. I couldn't resist. She squeezed. My cock twitched, sending a spurt of pre through the air. It landed on her muzzle. Her long, pink tongue slithered out between her jaws and licked it up. She growled in approval at the taste. That deep, lustful growl was music to my ears ... you could hear her lust, her desire. For me. _Only_ me.

She stood at the perfect height. Her jaws opened, that pink tongue extended, her head descended. This salazzle was going to fellate me. I didn't even need to ask. Her effeminate purple eyes looked up at me as her tongue graced the tip of my cock. She looked thoroughly enthused to have me in her grip, as if she wanted this even more than I did. She closed her lips around my tip and I basked in the powerful heat of her maw. I moaned louder than I wanted to; I almost came right then and there.

_"MASTER!"_

Tryst flinched. Her body lit up with a blue glow, and then she was whisked away. My head jerked up. There stood my lucario in the doorway, posed gracefully with Tryst's pokeball raised high.

"Rufio!" I screamed, equal parts elated and annoyed.

Tryst's pokeball jiggled in his paws–she clearly was not happy about the turn of events. He struggled to get a hold of it, clamping it down with his paws._ "Master, are you okay?"_

"I'm fine!" I yelled.

Rufio stepped back, his eyes widening. _"You're ... angry with me."_

"No I'm not!"

His aura-sensing stalks stiffened._ "You're ... angry I interrupted you."_

"Okay, yes, I am!" I blurted out. "Arceus, Rufio, you know what she can do!"

Tryst's ball popped open: the lizard forced herself out and lunged for me. Rufio pressed the button on the side, sending her back in with another flash of blue light. _"You told me if the Demon Lizard ever bewitched you, that I should intervene."_

"And you did a good job, okay!? I just ... need some time alone to cool off!"

Rufio didn't respond. His wide eyes zeroed in on my erection. I don't think he's ever seen me aroused before. Feeling embarrassed, I snatched up the fallen shower curtain and covered myself.

Rufio flinched. The ball in his paws was violently jumping about. _"Very well."_ He turned to the door. But as he crossed the threshold, he paused._ "Master, I am unsure if refusing her is the right thing to do."_

I pursed my lips tight. "You're breathing in her pheromones, Rufio. Close the door. Get some fresh air, go back to bed. I'll see you in the morning."

Rufio looked down to the floor. _"Goodnight, Master. I promise she will not bother your sleep again."_

Rufio left. I shut the shower off and collapsed back into the tub. My blood was pumped full of adrenaline and pheromones. My erection was still hard as a rock. I couldn't ignore it.

So I ... jerked myself off. I felt so dirty dong it, so full of shame. But I needed a release. My mind began to wander. To her. Tryst. The moment I woke up, when I was still inside of her. The little grunts she was making, how warm her vent felt around my–

Ugh, gross! My disgust and arousal clawed at each other for dominance. I tried to fantasize about anything else ... but the salazzle was always lurking in the back of my mind, forcing her way into my imagination. Eventually I gave up and let the fantasy run wild. I was so disgusted by how much I wanted her, yet ... my finish was intense. I moaned so loud I thought I'd wake the whole house. I finally collapsed and scrubbed the dirty fantasy from my mind. I was disgusted with myself. I towelled off and cleaned up the bathroom. I told myself it wasn't my fault, that it was the pheromones. I opened my bedroom windows to let in some fresh air and crawled into bed, curling up in fetal position. I felt dirty, violated, manipulated.

I woke up the next day with a cloud over my head. I did the unthinkable and ignored my morning routine. I didn't eat breakfast ... I didn't even come out of my bedroom. I wasn't sure what I was feeling, but I think I was depressed. Being woken up to find a pokemon having sex with you is pretty traumatizing as it is ... but that's not what bothered me so much.

No ... I was sullen because a part of me still wanted more.

The pheromones were out of my system, right? They don't last this long, right!? But when I recalled what happened that night, I felt a lingering ... _desire_. My dick had gotten a taste and it wanted more. Make no mistake: the shame and disgust were still there ... but now I had this little voice nudging me, wondering what the big deal was.

Tryst even tried to _fellate_ me! Just as a human might do. I couldn't believe it. Most girls don't give head without asking ... hell, there's been times where I'd have to beg for it (fuck you, Janice!). They treat it like a chore, or an obligation. So, to see Tryst do it so _eagerly _– it made me feel ... something I shouldn't.

I stayed in bed all morning bargaining with myself, wrestling with the idea of just letting the lizard win. Her pheromones would make any sex absolutely euphoric. They'd overpower any shame and disgust I'd have. But what about the aftermath? Could I look myself in the mirror ever again, knowing I had become a pokefucker?

You know what they say about pokefuckers ... they're too pathetic to get a _real _girlfriend. So they fuck their 'mons. They must be messed up in the head to find their pokemon attractive. It doesn't matter if that's actually true or not: people will talk anyway. If it ever became public that I boned a salazzle, I'd be shunned for the rest of my life. It would ruin my career: who'd want to entrust their pokemon to some weirdo who might fuck them?

I could even get prison time! Pokephilia is against the law in Kanto ... well, kinda. It's considered pokemon abuse, which is a felony. Case of sexual abuse between trainers and pokemon pop up in the news a few times a year, and it's always _heavily _demonized. The press will often say that the pokemon's mind had been cruelly warped to believe sex with their trainer is compulsory. And I'm sure that's true in some cases: sexual abuse is horrific. I've seen what shelter workers call "the thousand yard stare" that abused pokemon tend to have. It's heart-wrenching.

But nobody talks about the cases when the pokemon wants it, too. What if the pokemonis the _aggressor_? What if _they're _the one who made the first move, and _they're _the one won't take "No" for an answer? Nobody knew how to deal with that. It's always swept under the rug. Hell, a lot of people believe that sort of thing simply can't happen.

The longer I stayed in bed, the more I realized that I had no answers, either. Tryst clearly wanted me. It was consensual. I wasn't hurting her. So what was the problem ... aside from the _mountain_ of disgust and shame? My moral compass was going crazy, telling me that it was wrong. But it couldn't tell me _why_. And to be honest, that sorta scared me.

Some pokemon ethologists suggest that sexual relationships corrupt the pokemon's perception of the trainer-pokemon dynamic. Maybe they'll start to think they're human, or that they deserve human treatment. Maybe they'll stop taking orders, or act unpredictably in battle. But that's all anyone had: just "maybes". No respectable scientist has done any _real _research into this sort of thing. Imagine Professor Oak gathering up his legion of interns and saying "Take these pokemon, have sex with them for a month, and record the results."

I tossed and turned in bed. No, no! I was going about this all wrong. I've watched Tryst closely, studied the way she seduced my other pokemon. Sex is never just sex with salazzles! Tryst's behavioral patterns revolve around enslaving males to do her bidding. I couldn't fall into the same trap!

... then again, would a master so willingly pleasure their slave, like Tryst attempted to do with me? Great, now I'm back on the fellatio. I don't know why I couldn't stop thinking about that. Something about that moment just seemed so out-of-place for a pokemon as selfish as Tryst. It's like she _wanted _to pleasure me. But why? Was seducing me some perverse game to her? If I give in, does she "win"?

It was almost noon when I heard Rufio approach from the hallway. He didn't knock, but his telepathic voice reached me through the locked door.

_"Master, I have completed your morning duties for you. Everyone has been let out, fed, and allowed outside to play."_

I didn't reply.

_"Master, shall I let your pokemon know there will be no training today?"_

Yes ... no ... I don't know. I didn't answer.

The doorknob jiggled._ "Master, I have made breakfast for you. May I come in?"_

Ugh ... that's the one annoying thing about lucarios: you can't hide your feelings from them. I didn't fault him for trying to cheer me up, but I couldn't find it in me to feel grateful. I sighed. "I don't need coddling, Rufio! I'm fine!"

_"Do not lie to me, Master. Your aura is troubling. Why are you so upset?"_

Anger burned in my cheeks. "Um, I dunno, maybe because a smelly dominatrix lizard _raped_ me in my sleep? Arceus, Rufio, is it really that hard to figure out!?"

_"But there is something else. I see it, darkening your aura. It is ... complex, turbulent. Like a swirling cloud."_

"I don't need a psych evaluation, dammit! Get out of my head!"

_"I promise not to tell any humans that you have fornicated with a pokemon. Your secret is safe with me."_

"This isn't about shame, Rufio!" I shouted.

_"Master, there is no reason for hysterics. You are safe now. The Demon Lizard can no longer torment you. I have locked her in the pokeball clamp."_

I threw off my covers and sat up. "What!?" I yanked the door open. Rufio stood before me, looking defiant with snout held high. "Dammit, Ruf, I never told you to do that! How long has she been in there!?"

_"Since last night."_

"Arceus ..." I rushed passed him. Pokeball clamps do exactly what you think they do: they are big, heavy devices that make it impossible for a pokemon to force their ball open. They are cruel and are illegal to buy or sell, but many professional handlers still use them for containing especially unruly pokemon.

One of the golden rules of training is that you should never, _ever _force a pokemon to stay in their pokeball. You see, a pokemon should associate their pokeball with comfort, security, and a trainer's protection. It is their safe haven: a cozy respite from the outside world. It's okay to return a pokemon when they're acting dangerous, but they should never be "grounded" as punishment. Turn their ball into a prison and pokemon develop neuroses. Some will resent their trainer, or become depressed. Others end up with pokeball anxiety, like the ivysaur I'm working with. Poor Lily is so terrified of her ball that I have to shower her with affection and reassurance before she's calm enough to put her inside. Even after months of training, she has trouble staying in her ball for extended periods of time.

I stormed down the creaky basement stairs. Rufio followed closely. The clamp was sitting on a bench next to some musty boxes of old hiking gear. I unlocked the pressure release on the pokeball clamp and threw open the latch. Tryst immediately forced her pokeball open. The lizard lunged for Rufio as soon as she saw him. They began to fight. "Hey hey hey! Stop it!" I forced myself between the two. Tryst snarled and tried to worm her out of my grip. I shook her violently. "Cut it out! I mean it! Now Rufio, apologize to her."

My lucario audibly gasped. _"But Master! She is the one who should apologize!"_

I gave him a death stare. "Do it."

Rufio begrudgingly did as ordered. Tryst defiantly snorted and looked the other way.

"Now go make her some breakfast."

Rufio's clenched paws trembled, but he sunk his head in resignation. _"At once, Master."_ He slowly ascended the stairs, his crooked tail limply swaying behind him.

I knelt down to Tryst's height and put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I never told him to do that."

Tryst refused to give me eye contact.

I felt weird doing it, but I decided to hug her. "What you did last night to me was wrong. But you shouldn't be punished like that. I'm sorry."

Tryst stood awkwardly stiff in my embrace. But slowly she relaxed. A low hum started in her throat. She wrapped her arms around my chest. Her long fingers caressed my back muscles.

"See, I'm not the bad guy. I want to help you. I just–"

Wait. Tryst wasn't hugging me back. She was_ feeling me up._

I pushed her away. "The hell is wrong with you!?" Tryst looked back at me, her thin lips spreading in a grin. I got back to my feet, disgusted. I pointed to her pokeball still sitting in the opened clamp. "Do you want to go back inside that thing? Well, do ya?" This was a bluff, of course, but it was an important test. I needed to gauge her reaction.

Tryst showed no hint of concern at my threat. "Ra-a-a-ak!" she cried. "Grnz guu." Ignoring me, she ascended the stairs on all fours, her long tail raised deliberately. Areus, everything she had between her legs was on display. I can't believe I was actually inside that ... _that scaly lizard slit!_ Half-way up, Tryst glanced back to see if I was staring. I was. She growled in approval and continued on.

I watched her, fuming silently. I wasn't sure if Tryst was calling my bluff, or she was trying to show me that no punishment could sway her resolve. Either way, it was clear she had _zero _remorse for what she did last night. And that's what really bothered me.

There's a heated debate among trainers whether empathy in pokemon is a learned from humans, or found in the wild. Some trainers point to pokemon like audino and chansey, who are naturally compassionate and selfless. But I argue that no pokemon has "true" empathy, not even lucarios. Rufio always knows _when _I'm feeling depressed or ashamed, but he often doesn't understand _why_. And then on the opposite end of the spectrum, there's pokemon like salazzle. Not only does Tryst not understand what I'm feeling, she doesn't care. All she cares about is seducing me. Whatever that means to her – whether it's about enslaving the "one who got away" or if it's just about "winning" – she's willing to see it through at any cost.

"Salazzles are the worst," I muttered, climbing the stairs. "I can't imagine people actually training these things for fun."

I returned to the kitchen to see Tryst wolfing down her pokechow. Rufio stood on a step-stool in front of the sink, washing dishes. He gave me a sideways glance.

_"Master ..."_

"I don't want to talk about it."

I went to the family room and sat down with a plop. "TV on. Tune to channel PWN. Volume up. Higher ... higher ... that's good."

PokeWorld News was covering a live bust of a farfetch'd poaching hideout down near Silence Bridge, south of Lavender Town. Lavender police collected dozens of caged breeder birds, along with freezers full of plucked and cut meats. Farfetch'd are critically endangered due to over-hunting; they're so rare that the meat has become a prized delicacy to the ultra-rich. Those sick bastards ... no one seems to care if the bird goes extinct!

Rufio brought me breakfast on a tray: rice porridge with honey and fried egg. Man, he really _did _cook me a nice breakfast this morning. Too bad it's cold now.

"Thanks, lil buddy." I gave him a pat on the head before stuffing my face.

Rufio stood awkwardly next to me. _"Master, about last night ..."_

I tried to pay attention to the TV. "I told you I don't want to talk about it," I said, between mouthfuls of food."

_"I ... I think you should let the Demon Lizard mate you."_

I sighed and put the bowl down. "TV, mute." I turned to him. "Ruf, you can't be serious."

Furio fidgeted with his tail._ "Master, this game has gone on long enough. It's caused you undue stress and torment. Just accept her as your mate and move on."_

"I'm not her mate, Rufio!"

_"You should be."_

I held a finger up. "Wait ... did _she _tell you to say this?"

Rufio ducked his head. _"No, Master. But it is clear that she desires you. You are physically fit, your scent is attractive, and you have no mate that would get jealous. I do not see the problem."_

I forced a laugh. "You don't see a problem!? Rufio, she's a _pokemon_!"

_"Are you concerned you two cannot produce an egg?"_

"What!? No!"

_"Your bodies are similar enough ... you must be in the same egg group."_

"She uses sex to make others her slaves, Rufio!"

_"The Demon Lizard mates for pleasure, too. I know this first-hand."_

"Rufio, she a monster! She used you as a footstool for an entire day."

Rufio avoided eye contact. _"So she can be difficult at times ..."_

I put my hands on my hips. "That's it?"

_"And wicked. And honorless. And sadistic. And filthy ..."_

By "filthy", Rufio meant "dirty", as in someone who plays dirty. Idioms are hard.

_"But still, I see her aura. Her desire for you is obvious."_

My cheeks flushed. "Enough, Rufio. We're done: I'm not having this conversation."

_"You gain nothing by denying her. It will only get worse."_

"I said we're done."

_"I have seen your genitals. You are well-equipped to pleasure her."_

"ENOUGH, RUFIO!"

Rufio shrunk back like a frightened child. I immediately regretted yelling.

"I ... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to get angry." I grabbed him by the paw. "I know: you don't get why humans and pokemon can't mate. The thing about it is ..."

Rufio looked at me expectantly as I struggled to find the words. Truthfully, I didn't know where to begin.

"It's ... it's complicated, okay? It's just something that humans _don't do_."

_"Because of shame?"_

"Because ... because of a lot of reasons." I sighed. "Look, you're right about one thing: I've been hella stressed lately. But come on, we've dealt with worse pokemon with this. Remember when I took on that latios? It sent me to the hospital more than once! Tryst, she ... she just has trouble accepting the terms of the trainer-pokemon relationship. But eventually, she'll start to trust me, and-"

_"Trust leads to respect; respect leads to obedience."_

"Exactly. Sooner or later, she'll stop these crazy shenanigans. Just give it time." I patted him on the head. "Thanks for breakfast, lil buddy. Now go and play."

Rufio avoided eye contact. _"Very well, Master."_

I picked my bowl back up and finished breakfast. After that, I shaved, showered, brushed my teeth. Something about all the scrubbing and cleaning left me feeling like I had hit a reset button: by the time I was in fresh, clean clothes I noticed my mood was much better. I looked back at the foul state I was in this morning and shook my head. I couldn't believe I was _actually _considering letting Tryst have sex with me! Maybe the pheromones clung to my bedsheets? Can they even do that? Better wash my blankets just to be safe ...

I plopped back down on the sofa, watched TV, and tried not to think about salazzles. Not much later, I heard Tryst sneak up behind the couch. Great. She stuck her snout over the top and hissed in my ear, like a whisper. I breathed a sigh through my nose. It was time for my new strategy, and I wasn't looking forward to it.

I learned something important when Rufio locked Tryst in her ball: she was not intimidated by the harsh treatment she got. In fact, she seemed emboldened by it. I've seen this behavior in troublesome pokemon before: they've learned that any reaction was good, even a negative reaction. I knew how to deal with this: the way to beat a pokemon desperate for a reaction is to give them _no reaction at all_. I call it the Blind Eye technique. The Blind Eye was advanced game theory in the complex world of pokemon training … but it always works eventually.

From behind the sofa, Tryst flicked her tongue out, teasing my ear. She's done this before. It's another one of her tests. Usually I swat her snout away. But this time I didn't. Instead, I braced myself ... with the Blind Eye, things always get worse before it gets better. Tryst's tongue lingered. She churred softly in her throat, her tongue spread hot saliva across my neck. She nibbled on my earlobe just hard enough to feel pain. I flinched when she stuck the tip of her pointed tongue inside my ear. Ew, come on, Tryst ... gross!

Tryst looked at me, cocking her head in confusion. The lizard knew I should have objected by now. She sensed something was up.

Tryst continued her tests. Her tongue explored down my neck, leaving hot patches of saliva in its wake. Her slender fingers grasped at my shoulders. She stuck her long snout down my shirt, sniffing and licking my skin. My shirt bulged out as she ventured further, it's collar strained and stretched. I tensed up when her tongue reached down my belly. I was so tempted to reprimand her, but I remained still. As long as she didn't use those pheromones, I wasn't going to budge. And she wouldn't do that ... because I still had Daisy.

Tryst delved deeper under my shirt, her long slender neck working in her favor. Her sharp claws dug into the sofa as she balanced awkwardly on my shoulder. My shirt's collar reached its stretch limit, and stopped the salazzle before she could get her snout to my pants. Tryst strained, grunting as she extended her tongue down to my belt, trying to wriggle underneath.

I found it harder and harder to pay attention to the TV. The news anchors were talking about ... I dunno, something about legislation and lawmaking. I heard the words "Mewtwo experiment". After the legendary trainer Red discovered a new species of pokemon in Cerulean Cave, news spread quickly. Eventually, Dr. Fuji was to forced to admit the pokemon was not an _exact_ clone of mew, but the result of gene-splicing experiments. Many people were rightfully shocked and appalled; I remember the protests held on the streets. Years later, there's still immense stigma associated with gene editing technology. Nobody wants another mewtwo scenario.

Tryst's tongue was desperately trying to get under my pants. I felt that muscular, worm-like intruder spreading hot saliva along my belly. Slowly, I reached down, and methodically undid my belt buckle. Tryst gasped in delight.

I tightened it one notch and tucked the belt back in. Tryst let out an angry growl, and I smiled.

"Ow!"

She pulled her jaws out of my shirt in a flash, her teeth catching and ripping out a few of my manly chest hairs in the process. Maybe that was intentional. Okay, it probably was. Bitch.

Tryst climbed over the sofa. I kept my focus on the TV. Her hands went to my pants, her eyes looking to me for a reaction. Sitting next to me, she groped me awkwardly, her slender, clawed fingers too long to sit comfortably in my crotch. I grunted in discomfort as she squeezed and fondled my manhood. "Sssssrn, razza rrssss," she whispered in my ear, as if that meant something to me. Sorry, lizard ... it'll take more than your silver tongue to get me hard.

Tryst hooked her slender fingers under my pants. Using her other hand to distract me, she gripped and tugged gently, as if trying to hide the fact she was desperate to get them off. I knew she wouldn't get past my belt. I've been wearing one every day for this very reason: Tryst hadn't yet figured out how belt buckles worked. The tugging became more obvious. Eventually she used both hands. She hopped off the sofa and pulled hard, nearly causing me to slide right off the cushion!

I slowly, calmly scooted back and said nothing. Tryst growled. Even with my eye on the TV, I saw her glaring at me with all the anger of a wild gyarados, and I almost gave myself away with a grin.

Tryst crawled over me. She straddled my lap, grunting and snorting softly. She shifted her body to get herself between my eyes and the screen. I craned my neck to see, but Tryst was adamant on keeping herself in the center of my vision. I sighed out my nose and tried my best not to make eye contact. Tryst exhaled directly on my face, and gave my freshly-shaven face a long, sensual lick. She lingered on my lips, and I pursed them tight when she tried to force them open. Gross, now I had salazzle saliva on my lips!

Tryst placed her long fingers on my shoulders and gripped me tight. Her muscular tail wormed between my thighs, spreading them so she could press her crotch against mine. I could feel my heartbeat quicken. But still I focused on the TV. Tryst licked her lips, a grin spreading on her snout. She began to rock her haunches: grinding her slit on me slowly, sensually ... she's so eager to show me what those hips do. Too bad I wasn't buying what she was selling.

"TV, volume up," I said. PWN was playing some amateur footage of another mewtwo recently spotted on Cinnabar Island. It's scary to think that nobody knows how many specimens were made. Blurry and dimly-lit, the gray-skinned pokemon moved so quick that it was only clearly visible for a few frames. Ugh, mewtwo gave me the heebie-jeebies. What's with that fleshy tube thing coming out the back of its head? Some people claim mewtwo looks so different from mew because part of its genome came from _human DNA_. Who would do that sort of thing?

... of course, it's hard to concentrate on the TV when I have a salazzle that's _also_ keen on mixing human and pokemon DNA.

Tryst dry humped me at a slow, steady rhythm, causing the sofa springs to gently squeak. She certainly was working herself up: the lizard's breathing was getting husky. She huffed hot air in my face and licked my neck with slow, lingering laps. Bump, grind, bump ... Tryst worked those hips as salaciously as a salazzle could. Ugh ... the crotch of my pants were starting to feel a little tight: I hated to admit the constant grinding pressure on my dick was starting to get to me. Remember, Riley, she's a pokemon: you don't want her _scaly lizard slit!_

Phew, even thinking those words were enough to cool me off.

"Rern gzl, grzzz ..." Tryst murmured. She rubbed her snout against my neck. Maybe she was talking dirty to me. I didn't want to know. I couldn't believe that my life had reached a point where I had a horny lizard pokemon giving me a crazed lap dance like a coked-up stripper ... and all I wanted to do was watch TV.

Tryst flipped herself around. She scooted back and lifted her haunches, putting her bright pink slit on display. I couldn't not look at it. Her arousal had caused her vulva to puff outward, as if it were opening to accept a visitor. I could see the tip her clit nestled just inside. Ugh, it was gross. Makes me wonder how the hell actual pokefuckers find their pokemon's junk attractive. I mean, seriously: have you ever _seen _an arcanine's dick? That monsterous, veiny rocketship-shaped dong, all covered in yucky-looking spiderweb veins … disgusting! How could anyone find that hot?

Her muscular tail slipped around my neck and tightened like a noose. Uh-oh.

I barely had time to turn my cheek before she slammed her crotch into my face. I sputtered and tensed up, fighting the urge to throw her off. Growling, Tryst grinded her slit on my cheek. Her labial scales gilded against my skin. The smell of her musk was so thick that I wanted to retch. My fingers gripped the sofa cushion tight. Her tail pressed the back of my head into her, keeping me buried between her legs. Soft little grunts escaped her throat as she navigated her crotch to align with my lips. Arceus, I could feel her moisture spreading on my cheek! I actually gagged. Hold steady, Riley ... she's bound to give up sooner or later.

Somewhere in my mind, as Tryst brazenly grinded on my face, I began to get thoughts I shouldn't. I couldn't deny this would have been hot if Tryst was human. I've never met a girl that was so desperate for my dick that she'd do something like this. Damn, if I ever met someone that'd grind my face like this, I'd-

No no no no! Stop it, Riley! Scaly lizard slit, _scaly lizard slit!_ Cool yourself off: pay attention to the TV, what's going on? I couldn't see anything except hot pink salazzle butt ...yet I still had my ears. PWN was on a commercial break. I heard glitzy techno music and the voice of Brock, Pewter City's Gym Leader. He was advertising Pewter Crunchies ... never was a fan of those things: they absolutely wreck your teeth. I wondered how much Gym Leaders got paid to endorse products. As Tryst's tail tightened around my neck, I listened to every single commercial, focused on the words, repeated them in my mind. It was the only way I could stay sane with salazzle puss mashed against my face.

My phone buzzed. I got a text. I fished my phone out of my pocket and managed to look at the screen. It was one of my drinking buddies. We do board games every weekend.

_"Yo. Carly got the nite off. Bout 2 do a booz run. U in 4 game nite?" _

As calmly as I could (with a horny pokemon grinding on my face), I managed to type out a _"No."_ and put the phone down.

I got a response. "_Wyd?"_

I picked the phone back up. Any distraction was better than no distraction. _"This salazzle is giving me trouble. Maybe tomorrow?"_

I counted the seconds, ignoring the salazzle slit on my face until I got a reply. _"LOL. Dun let her fuck u. You could get pokerus ;-P~~"_

_"Humans can't get pokerus."_

_"U dunno for sure. Unless ... you tried already. LOL"_

_"STFU. You know I'm better than that."_

Tryst's tail finally relaxed, and I breathed a sigh of relief. She pulled her haunches away and I was grossed out to feel a rush of air evaporate the moisture on my cheek.

_"Yea yea ... ok Mr master trainer. c u tmrrw?"_

Tryst snatched my phone away before I could respond. She threw it across the room with a growl. The lizard plopped down on my lap and puffed out an exasperated breath through her nose. I put my eyes back on the TV, but even though the corner of my vision, I saw Tryst was not happy. She stared at me in a mixture of confusion and frustration, her mind trying to work out what was going on.

I think that's when the lightbulb went off in her mind: the damn lizard finally realized that I wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of a reaction. She nudged me once. Then again, harder. I could see the nasty plot forming in her perverted pokemon brain. Tryst leaned in. She caressed my cheek with her long fingers. She pulled back, and–

_SLAP!_

"Ow!" I grabbed my stinging cheek. "Hey!"

Tryst reared her hand back for a double slap. I caught it and held firm. "No." I said. Even the Blind Eye technique has limits, of course. She pulled back her other hand. I caught that one, too. I held onto both her wrists as she tried to pull away.

_SLAP!_

I flinched in surprise. The damn lizard got me with her tail!

Tryst cackled out a laugh. She drew her tail back for another slap. I shoved her off of me, harder than I should. Her noggin hit the coffee table with a thunk. Oops. Tryst shook her head as she stood up. She smoldered with anger. I mean, literally: the acrid smoke puffed out from her nostrils. I could see it in her eyes that the lizard had had enough. She was done playing games. Tryst squatted down. Her tail raised–

And that was my threshold.

I've gotten keen on telling when Tryst is about to use her pheromones: she'll stick her butt in the air, raise her tail over her head, and start to wiggle her hips. I grabbed her by the tail before the pheromones spread. "Don't you dare."

Tryst squirmed in my grip. I needed my secret weapon. I scooped Tryst up by the armpits, causing her to yelp in surprise. "RU-FI-O!" I yelled.

_"Yes, Master!"_

Tryst hissed and kicked in the air as Rufio came running into the house. He was monitoring our auras from afar, just like he always does. He tossed me Daisy's pokeball. I dropped Tryst and caught it with one hand like an Ace. Hell yeah.

I shoved the ball in Tryst's face. "You try the smoke, you get the 'poke. Got it?"

Tryst snarled. She raked her claws down my extended arm. I recoiled, screaming in pain. Arceus, she drew blood! Clutching my bleeding arm, let Daisy out of her pokeball and retreated to the far side of the room. The slowpoke appeared in a blinding blue flash.

"Daisy, disable!"

Tryst pounced, knocking me to the floor as the slowpoke focused her powers. A pulse washed over Tryst as she drew her arm back ...

And ...

And she couldn't figure out what was supposed to happen next.

I smirked. Damn, I loved that move! I shoved the bewildered salazzle off of me and stood up. "Attack me again and I'll have her hose you with a water gun. Now get out!"

Tryst stamped the carpet and hissed. She gnashed her teeth as tongues of fire curled out from her jaws. And I calmly sat back down, basking in her childish outburst like some sick sadist. Oh yeah, baby ... eat that humble pie, eat it right up.

Tryst turned tail and skittered out of the room, deliberately knocking over everything between her and the back door. My breakfast platter fell to the carpet, dirty side down. Magazines went flying with a swish of her tail. She slapped Daisy in the face with her tail, kicked over the kitchen stool. Aluminum food bowls clattered to the ground. Finally, she threw the back door open with a grunt and dashed outside ... leaving the door wide open (again!). I watched her tantrum with pride and satisfaction. The Blind Eye technique finally worked!

Rufio rushed to my aid, bringing a potion and a towel. Thanking him, I wiped the blood off my arm and sprayed myself. I winced as the stinging aerosol hit my arm. It won't cause me to heal as quick as pokemon do, but still ... it helps. I kept pressure on the wound as Rufio began dabbing the carpet with a wet sponge. "_Master, what did you do to the Demon Lizard?"_

I smirked. "I gave her the Blind Eye treatment. She didn't like that."

Rufio closed his eyes. His aura-sensing stalks quivered. And then, the lucario showed a rare smile. _"You did well."_

I kicked my legs up on the coffee table with a satisfied sigh. "I know."

It was a hard fight, but what can I say? The better player won.

Now, as far as my friends are concerned, this is where the story ends: with Tryst sulking in defeat, and me basking in my well-earned victory. That's all anyone will ever hear. But if you're reading this, you probably know better. Because it's not like I posted this story just anywhere on the internet: I posted it _here_. On a website where pokephiles gather. A place where I could safely get my confession out. A place where I wouldn't be judged.

I know it's been a long read, but believe me, we're just getting started. Because if there's one thing I've learned about salazzles, it's that they _can't stand _not getting their way.

THE END


	3. Checkmate

_Checkmate ~ A Salazzle Story_

_Disclaimer: The following events are true, but names and other details have been changed to protect the identity of those involved. Any resemblance to real pokemon trainers is coincidental._

Riley, here. Alright, this is the part you've all been begging to read. I know there's gonna be a lot of folk skipping to the good parts, so I just have one thing to say: if you're confused about names or past events ...

READ THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS, YOU FILTHY ANIMALS

This is a long chapter, so I'll say this now. _Take a break!_ Better to split the reading up into multiple parts … you'll enjoy it more.

Now where was I? Oh right: I left off with Tryst throwing a tantrum and running away (hah). Rufio finished cleaning up after her, then went back outside (closing the door behind him ... finally). I got up and washed my face and arm clean. Then I went to my room and surfed the internet for a while. Nothing important, just my usual haunts: I perused various trainers forums, streamed music, browsed pokememes, read the latest news in Kanto politics. I have no idea how much time I wasted, but before I knew it, the afternoon sun had set enough to shine through my window.

My bedroom door opened. I heard Rufio's telepathic voice in my mind. _"Master ..."_

I turned to him. "What's up, lil buddy?"

I noticed my lucario was not alone. I pushed my chair back to see down the hallway. Behind him was a dozen more pokemon: the rhydon, the growlithe, the sandshrew brothers ... even the new scyther I acquired. And it couldn't have been a coincidence that each pokemon was male ...

My stomach turned to ice. "Tryst!" I yelled. "What did you do!?"

Tryst appeared, stepping up next to Rufio. That's when I smelled the cloud of pheromones following her. She pointed to me and growled out an order. Pokemon entered one-by-one, filling my bedroom. That damn lizard recruited a whole army!

I grabbed the slowpoke's pokeball off my desk and unleashed her. "Daisy, protect me!" I screamed. "Use hypnosis!"

The slowpoke hesitated. She was confused by the number of targets. The houndoom was the first to attack. Daisy shrugged off his fireball and blasted him with a psychic pulse. The houndoom fell into a trance and grew still, but Daisy was quickly overwhelmed by the other pokemon. Rufio jumped me. We both fell to the ground. He snatched Daisy's pokeball from my hand and withdrew her.

"Rufio, what the hell!?"

My lucario stood over me and put a foot on my chest. _"Congratulations, you are being mated. Please do not resist."_

I was pounced on by the pokemon mob. The rhydon dragged me onto my bed, the sandshrew brothers grabbed hold of my arms. I thrashed and struggled, throwing one of the sandshrews off. The mankey jumped on my chest and pounded me in the gut. I heaved and gasped as the air was forced out of my lungs. Together, the pokemon piled on until I was completely pinned.

Rufio put me in a headlock and squeezed tight until I relaxed. _"I told you not to resist."_

I struggled to speak with the lucario's strong arms around my neck. "Ruf, Ruf snap out of it, man!"

_"The Mistress likes you. You saved her from the Dark Place. You protected her when she was weak. You taught her humans could be trusted. She wanted to reward you, but you rejected her gift. You will reject it no longer."_

Tryst's slave army pinned my arms to the bed, forced my legs to lie flat. I squirmed and fought, but there were too many pokemon to break free. "Rrg, I don't want her gift!"

_"You will accept it anyway. The other pokemon have been talking. Many were jealous of you, jealous that you were in Her eyes. It did not take much convincing for them to join the Mistress in her plan."_

I struggled to pull my limbs out from under the pile of pokemon. "Urk! T-t-that's ... super creepy, Ruf, not gonna lie!"

_"Do not resist. The Mistress wants you to save your strength."_

I had one more card to play. It was a long shot, for sure, but I had to try. "Lilith!" I shouted. "Lilith, can you hear me? Teleport me outta here, please!" I panted, desperately waiting for an answer. "WHERE ARE YOU, LILITH! ARCEUS, IF YOU DON'T ANSWER ME, I'LL–"

_"You'll do what, human?"_ The kadabra teleported into my room. "_You are not in a position to threaten. And besides ... it's much more fun to see you squirm."_

"Murkrow, Lilith! MURK-KROW!"

_"I call your bluff."_

"What!?"

_"You can't get the bird when you're pinned to your bed."_

"Lilith, I swear–"

The kadabra grinned. _"Shut up your face." _Lilith closed her eyes, and with a flash, she disappeared.

In that moment, as my last lifeline teleported away ... that was when I realized I had lost. Tryst had forced her hand, and I had no counter. If there were any pokemon left that were still loyal, they were outside in my backyard, while I was stuck in the bedroom. There were no more tricks up my sleeve, no more traps to spring, no more cards to play. Tryst turned my own pawns against me and captured my king.

Check ... and _mate!_

The pokemon at the foot of my bed made way for the Queen. Tryst stood with head held high, looking like the smuggest damn lizard in the entire world. My gaze narrowed. "There you are ... you manipulative little bitch."

Tryst accepted the insult as if it were a compliment. But Rufio growled, choking me tight. _"Do not speak to the Mistress that way! She is perfect and loving and pure."_

"_Grrk!_ Ruf, man," I gasped for breath, "we're gonna have a long, long talk later. You won't like it."

Grinning wide, the triumphant salazzle approached slowly, her hips swaying, tail arcing to and fro as she spread more of her pheromones. It was already filling my lungs: so musky and sweet. Arceus, I hated her. I hated that covetous gaze, that toothy grin. I hated the way she strutted about, the way she looked at me like I was prey to be feasted on. I hated everything about her!

I looked around the room, furious at the pokemon holding me down. "Well I hope you're happy, all of you. I hope you're reeeeal happy. Tryst, you finally got me where you want me. You won, alright? Is that what you want to hear? You finally won ... now wipe that stupid grin off your stupid face!" Tryst growled in approval. I turned my head. "And Rufio, congrats: you finally got me to bang a pokemon. The rest of you ... what are you here for? Are we gonna do one big pokemon orgy!?"

Rufio tightened his headlock._ "No. The Mistress has eyes for you and you alone. It pains us greatly, but we are only here to assist in the mating."_

"Arceus, you're just gonna hold me down _and watch?_ I don't know if that's better or worse ..."

At Tryst's orders, the scyther cut my clothes away, slicing through my belt with ease. "Hey, hey! Wait! Lemee take them off! Oh, come _on!_ I loved that shirt!" The other pokemon began ripping the shreds off and tossing them to the floor.

_"The Mistress takes no chances." _Rufio said. Within moments I was naked, or close enough to it.

Tryst blew a gust of pheromones across my body. There was no point in trying to hold my breath. I could already feel it teasing my brain, dampening my resistance. I closed my eyes, breathed it in, and exhaled it in a long sigh. I'm ashamed to admit I had thought about this moment, even fantasized about it. But I never thought it'd actually happen – especially not like this. I was about to become a pokefucker. And there was no going back.

I opened my eyes. "Let's get this over with. Tryst ... come and get me!"

The salazzle's eyes opened wide. The lizard wasted no time and pounced between my legs. I couldn't believe how fast she put her mouth on my dick. Her hands were all over me, exploring my muscles and bare skin. She raked her claws against me just enough to leave marks. Ouch!

Tryst wrapped her snake-like tongue around my flaccid cock and took me into her mouth. She felt like a furnace compared to my air-conditioned room. She took every inch of me down her long snout and squeezed tight. I could feel myself getting hard, and fast. My dick grew longer, pushing deeper into her mouth. The head of my cock rubbed against the ridges on the roof of her mouth. The salazzle growled with delight as she felt me grow stiff between her jaws. Arceus, it's like she was starving! I've never seen anyone so hungry for cock in my life. She's probably been wanting this for weeks ...

This wasn't what I was expecting ... I thought that she'd take things slow, tease me endlessly and make me beg like some pathetic slave. Instead I got a salazzle pent-up from weeks of anticipation. She was being way too rough on me, like she was desperate to get me hard. I tried to pull my hips way, but my struggle only excited her.

Minutes passed like seconds. Tryst pulled off of me with a gasp. My now-erect cock slammed against my stomach with a wet slap. She looked legitimately proud of her work. But the salazzle couldn't keep her snout away, and went to licking me down the length of my cock with an uncommon eagerness. It's like I had The Most Interesting Dick In the World. Something about her enthusiasm resonated with me.

"Hot damn ..." I whispered.

Tryst flinched at the sound of my voice. The lizard seemed to remember something. Her gaze met mine, a grin spread across her scaly lips. Uh oh ... I shoulda kept my mouth shut!

Keeping eye contact, Tryst slowly, deliberately stretched her tongue out of her mouth. That pink, snake-like organ wrapped around my cock one ... then twice, sliding across my girth like a snake. She wrapped her slender fingers around my base and squeezed, her claws pricking my skin. Tryst held that pose, with her tongue wrapped me like a barber pole. Her eyes stared into mine ... seemingly waiting for a reaction. I felt her hot breath wash over my balls. I throbbed in her tongue's serpentine embrace. Her tongue squeezed me in response, but she remained still.

"Why are you doing this?" I blurted out, feeling annoyed. "Is this a part of your game?"

Tryst remained still as a statue.

I shook my hips in frustration. "Dammit Tryst, I'm your trainer, not your plaything!"

A throaty hum escaped Tryst's throat, and she wriggled her hips against my mattress.

"You're not gonna make me beg. _You _wanted this, not me!"

Tryst wiggled and squirmed even more.

"Just do it already!"

Rufio tightened his chokehold._ "You do not get to order the Mistress around."_

I grit my teeth. "Rufio, I swear I'm gonna replace you with a cereal box mood ring."

Tryst, having enjoyed my outburst thoroughly, relented and began to work me with that tongue. It glided up and down my length, squeezing and pulsing along the way. I groaned. It was like being jerked off ... but, so _so _much better. My toes curled as her tongue worked me over. I couldn't believe Tryst wanted to pleasure me like this. It was flattering. This lovely, perfect salazzle, with her beautiful charcoal gray and bright pink scales ...

Dammit, her pheromones were already messing with my head.

I wanted to stretch out, but the pile of pokemon holding me down were starting to make my limbs ache. "Can you let me loose, now?"

_"No,"_ Rufio said. _"You cannot be trusted until you've given the Mistress your seed."_

"You mean I have to _cum_, first!? Oh, come on!" I tried to shake my left leg. "Seriously, Rocko, you're cutting off my circulation." The rhydon flinched in surprise. The big, burly pokemon had my whole leg under his chest. "Yes, _you_, ya big lunkhead!" Rocko looked to Tryst for what to do. She hissed at him, and the rhydon shook his head at me.

_"If you want to be released, you must give the Mistress what she wants."_

"Arceus, Rufio, that's messed up ..." I relaxed and tried to concentrate on the pleasure.

Tryst squeezed the base of my cock. I could already feel pre-cum building. I flexed and a spurt of it shot out at surprising speed, landing on Tryst's snout. She looked surprised, but licked herself clean in a flash. She growled in approval at the taste, and immediately went back to working my shaft. That tongue was heaven to me: the way it slid up and down my shaft, curling around my tip every so often, spreading more and more of her hot, ashy saliva ... Arceus, she was even playing with my balls, gently squeezing and tugging them. How did this salazzle somehow know _exactly _what to do? Did her last owner train her for this!?

Tryst seemed to be enjoying herself, too. The salazzle stretched her hind legs out on the bed and rocked her hips against the mattress. Some of the entranced pokemon leaned closer to her haunches, taking in her aroused scent. The totodile made a bold move, ducking his snout between her legs for a lick. Hissing angrily, Tryst swatted his nose away with her tail, causing him to yelp and retreat. I actually felt bad for him.

I couldn't hold back my moans any longer. Tryst was working me with expert precision. Every time I leaked a bit of pre-cum, she lapped it all up like it was candy. Maybe it was the pheromones talking, but I swore that Tryst was better at giving head than any girl I've been with. She may not have the soft lips for suction, but the way that tongue squeezed and glided down my shaft more than made up for it. How many dicks has this pokemon sucked before!?

Tryst's tongue finally retreated into her mouth. She was panting from arousal, but seemed to have worked out a lot of her initial impatience and excitement. I watched, silent as my cock twitched in her long lizard fingers. She squeezed me tight in response, growling with approval. The salazzle gave me a devious look. She opened her mouth wide and extended her tongue. But she hesitated, not going back down on me just yet, seemingly putting her open maw on display for me. I groaned in frustration – which only seemed to arouse her further, as she wriggled her slit against my bedsheets. There's no question she was enjoying making me squirm.

My head was saturated with noxious pheromones. My mind was starting to turn ... because, now that I thought about it, being her toy sounded pretty nice, actually ... she's such a beautiful pokemon ... just look at those wanton eyes, her smooth scales, those shapely haunches ... I'd be honored to serve her every whim ... to be her willing sl–

No, no! Snap out of it, Riley! The salazzle may have won, but I still had my pride.

"Come on!" I yelled. "What are you waiting for, you stinky lizard?"

Tryst's eyes opened wide – that wasn't the reaction she was expecting. Her smile widened, she wriggled her hips even more. Arceus, it's like she's enjoying this more than I was.

"Do it!" I shook the bed. "Finish me off already!"

Tryst hummed in her throat, and an odd feeling washed over me. I think that she actually _liked _that I was still putting up a fight. She wrapped her mouth around my dick and put me back in heaven. I breathed a sigh of relief and basked in the warmth of her maw. Tryst sunk her head down until her snout was pressed firmly against my crotch. And then she twisted her head to the side. I saw a smirk out of the corner of her lips.

I was not prepared for what happened next.

She dropped her head, slamming her cheek flat against my hips and forcing my dick through the side of her mouth and straight down her throat. Her serpentine tongue wrapped tight around the base of my shaft. And she began to swallow ... again, and again, and again.

Arceus, it was unreal. I thrashed and moaned, my hips rising up on their own accord. How was she doing that without gagging!? She mashed her face against my crotch ... the lizard was trying to get it as deep in her throat as possible. From there she worked me forcefully, swallowing as loud slurping noises came from her open mouth. Her hot saliva spread all over my skin. My dick was leaking precum like crazy, shooting it down her throat. Her one hand kept a gentle squeeze on my balls, the other stroked and felt up my stomach. Tryst pulled back every so often to breathe, and every time my cock slid back into her throat I felt like I'd melt into the bedsheets.

The best blowjob I've ever had was coming from a pokemon. Maybe the pheromones were making it better than it really was ... but I was past caring. Arceus, I was in ecstasy! This damn lizard was sucking me as eagerly as a newborn miltank, and I've never been happier. I could feel the pressure rising ... I was gonna burst soon. I tried to weakly thrust into her mouth. I couldn't focus enough to resist the pheromones. This beautiful, perfect pokemon was giving me the time of my life and I could only hope my orgasm would please her.

Tryst sensed I was ready. She felt me stiffen and pulled me out of her throat just in time. She closed her eyes and clamped down hard as I unloaded into her mouth. A torrent of hot cum shot against the roof of her mouth. My whole body went rigid, the pokemon around me struggled to keep me pinned. I heard Rufio grunt in my ear as he tried to hold me down. As Tryst tasted my cum, the lizard closed her eyes and growled long and hard. She clamped down greedily, constricting me with her tongue, trying to draw more of my cum out. I gasped–it was almost too much to bear. I felt like my orgasm would never stop. I shut my eyes so tight that I saw lights. Tryst's growls filled the room as I shot four, five, six loads into her mouth.

And then, after what seemed like an eternity, my body relaxed, my mind returned from outer space, and Tryst slowly unfurled her tongue from my still-throbbing shaft. I dribbled out more cum onto my stomach. I didn't think it was possible for me to make such a mess ... it looked like I had been pent up for a month. Tryst's purple eyes narrowed into a devious stare, and she growled deeply as cum dripped out of her open jaws.

Arceus, that was _my _cum all over a _pokemon's _mouth ...

A shiver ran down Tryst's spine as she savored my seed. She swallowed, licked her lips, and began to lick my dick clean. It's like the lizard couldn't get enough! I stared, bewildered ... I didn't taste _that _good, did I? Never met a girl that loved the taste … and one actually was so turned off by it that it ruined sex (Fuck you, Janice!). Maybe salazzles had different taste buds from humans? Pheromones or no, watching her do that was hotter than a charizard's tail.

I panted hard, unable to take my eyes off this pokemon so eagerly lapping up my cum. I never really noticed just how perfect her dark gray scales complimented her violet and electric pink underbelly, or appreciated the way she stared at me with those indigo-hued, lust-drunk eyes ... she was the most beautiful pokemon I've ever owned.

"There ..." I gasped. "You got me to cum. Now get these pokemon off of me!"

Rufio looked to Tryst. She gave the signal, and the mob of pokemon finally released my arms and legs. I groaned in pain as I stretched my sore limbs. I looked around the pheromone-filled room, and was embarrassed to notice that _all _the males were starting to show their arousal. Some were already dripping pre-cum on my carpet. Gross. They must be jealous of me, jealous of the Mistress' attention ...

Ugh, snap out of it, Riley! She's a pokemon, not your mistress!

"Can we get them out of here?" I nodded to the pokemon. "It's creepy having them watch." The salazzle ducked her head, looking unsure if she was ready to trust me. "Come on, I'm not going anywhere."

Tryst judged me with harsh eyes. A growl welled up in her chest.

My mind raced to think of something she'd want to hear. "Please? I ... I want you, no ... I _need _you all to myself."

Tryst's eyes softened, and she hummed in her throat. The lizard grunted out an order and let her army of pokemon go. One by one they left the room, sullen and frustrated and needing a release. Now the salazzle was mine ... all mine.

She pounced forward and put her mouth on mine. I grunted in surprise as she spread her jaws and wrapped me in a deep kiss. I was hit with a rush of endorphins as I kissed her back. Her hands felt up my chest, her tongue pushed its way into my mouth. And I ... let her explore. I wanted her to explore. I moaned into her mouth.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, as salazzle tongue invaded my mouth, I felt grossed out. I couldn't believe I let a pokemon french kiss me ... a pokemon that just finished sucking my dick! But in my sex-drunken state, I couldn't bring myself to stop. I had lost the ability to feel disgust or shame. All that was left ... was lust.

Man, these pheromones were dangerous. I needed to get control of myself! Struggling, I put a hand on Tryst's chest and pushed. She resisted at first, but I finally managed to get her off of me. To my shock, her tongue lingered awhile before finally slipping from my lips and sliding back between hers. She fell back into a sitting position, straddling my dick.

"Get on it," I hushed, though I didn't need to tell her.

Tyst stood up, legs spread. Arceus, she looked perfect, standing there like that. Her scaly lizard slit was on display for me ... and, fuck me – I licked my lips at the sight of it. Her labial scales had puffed outward, and her clitoris had swelled enough to peek out. She was wet enough that a line of fluid dribbled down her inner thigh. She was wet ... _for me_. My dick was already preparing for round two. I held it up for her – still covered in her saliva.

She crouched down. I ran the tip of my cock along the cleft of her labial scales, felt the miniature furrows around her entrance. She was warm down there, the scales guarding her vent were tiny and supple to the touch, like soft, bumpy leather. I don't know what I had expected, really ... something scaly, rough, and uncomfortable, I guess.

As soon as the salazzle had lined up, she sat down with a slam and hilted me in an instant. Tryst arched her back and croaked out a gasp. I swore, grabbing her hips in reflex as her vent quivered around my girth. Arceus, she was so tight! Her vent radiated intense heat. I thought I was gonna melt. When her quivering calmed down, and Tryst's vice grip around my dick had relaxed, I loosened my grip of her haunches and opened my eyes. Her slit was spread wide around the base of my cock, fully exposing a horn-like clitoris that would have grossed me out were I not currently high on pheromones. That thing was huge ... no wonder salazzles love sex so much.

I looked further up, admiring this salazzle's curvy body and beautiful flame-patterned scales. When I met her eyes, Tryst wriggled her hips, clenched her vent around me, and let out a playful growl. This was the moment she had been waiting for … she bided her time for weeks, and now it was finally here. The salazzle looked so full of herself, so satisfied and indulgent!

I hated it. I hated it so much. And I ... I also loved it. Damn this lizard.

Tryst laid her palms on my shoulders and began riding me. She started slow, but within moments the lizard had thrown her head back and was bouncing harder than an hyperactive spoink. Good grief, she was so wet already ... and the way her puss glided around my cock had me questioning why I had ever resisted her in the first place. The bed began to squeak louder and louder. All I could do was moan and hold on as she pounded my hips. Her long tongue whipped through the air, like she was tasting our scents. Her hips bucked against mine with an enthusiasm bordering on hysterics. I've never laid with anyone this wild before!

I put my hands on her svelte, curvaceous frame. Her scales were so smooth under my fingers. I fell in love with the bumpy texture of her skin, the feel of her muscles moving underneath. As I felt her up, Tryst played into my touch, wiggling her body and showing off her curves. I admit that her flat chest was a turn-off to me – I was a man who loved my boobs. But hey: at least she didn't lie there and expect me to do all the work (fuck you, Janice!).

Tryst rode me with all the fury and aggression of a bucking tauros. I thought she was gonna break my box springs ... or even my dick! Tryst bounced so high that I kept slipping out of her, then she'd growl and smack me on the chest until I put it back in. Pretty soon my chest was red from all the slaps and scratches. But I didn't mind. I'd endure anything for her.

Arceus, these pheromones were making me pathetic! I needed to focus, hold onto whatever shred of dignity I could ...

Tryst could not sit still: she was always feeling me up, or tasting my skin, or trying out new angles to grind. Her muscular tail squirmed and wagged between my legs, like they were feeling up my calves. I couldn't believe it: this was a pokemon who _loved_ my dick. Every little wiggle of her hips, every snort and growl and hiss she made, even the sound of her scales slapping against my skin was driving me crazy. My head was spinning; I swore the whole room was fogging up, and my dick had never felt this hard in my life. I wasn't sure if I was about to get sick or spontaneously orgasm.

... Fuck!

It was the latter, definitely the latter! I clenched her hips and held her down as I came inside of her. I had only lasted a few minutes, what the hell!? I felt like I was teenager again: a wide-eyed, naive trainer on the road with a heart dead-set on the Pokemon League. Danielle was at least seven years older than me. She actually laughed when it happened. I was so embarrassed ...

As my cock throbbed and twitched inside Tryst's tight vent, she wriggled her hips, and clenched her internal muscles. I gasped and groaned: her muscle control was unreal! It felt like she was milking me for more cum. When my orgasm subsided, I looked up at her. Tryst was grinning wildly. That smug lizard knew _exactly _what had happened ... she seemed to be expecting it!

Tryst did not dismount me. She had the audacity to expect a round three. And to my amazement ... I felt I could deliver. These pheromones had given me uncanny drive. Even just laying my eyes on this beautiful lizard had my dick jumping to get back into the action.

"You're not done yet, are you?" Growling playfully, Tryst grinded her hips on mine. "Heh ... that's what I thought."

I used the opportunity to sit up. I stuffed some pillows behind me and leaned back against the headboard. Tryst wrapped her slender arms around my neck. And just like that, I was overwhelmed with a desire to kiss her. I dove in, she didn't object. She spread her jaws over my lips and we twisted tongues. And just like that, I was fully hard again. It was magical.

Tryst hooked her hind legs over my thighs. I grabbed her by the base of the tail. And we continued fucking. Me, a human, and this pokemon ... it didn't even feel strange anymore. Good gravy, Tryst was the perfect lover: A fun-sized nymphomaniac with a permanent case of Bedroom Eyes who loved to suck dick and ride cock like it was calling her name. I knew the pheromones were talking, but I didn't care: I was in love with this lizard!

Tryst puffed smoke from her nose. The lizard put all her weight on me, held me down, and showed me _exactly _what those hips could do. She rotated her pelvis upward, and switched from using her legs, to pushing off with her tail. I actually felt a change in which parts of her pussy I was rubbing against. She went slower this time, but harder ... pushing against me on every thrust. The headboard began a rhythmic_ thunk, thunk, thunk_ against the wall. I was in heaven. Arceus, even knowing her tail could do _that_ ... it drove me crazy. Tails were the best! Especially salazzle tails!

Tryst's eyes unfocused. She grunted with every thrust, her tongue flopped out of her mouth. Man, for a pokemon her size, my dick was probably huge to her. And she _loved _it. I couldn't believe Tryst was having sex with my other pokemon when she had me around! They didn't deserve her ...

My gaze was drawn to that clit of hers, so clearly exposed with my cock spreading her little slit wide. It looked like a bright red strawberry, and was probably just as tasty. I wanted to ... I needed to pleasure her. She deserved it. I tried to go down on her as she rode me, but I wasn't that flexible. So I deftly sunk one hand and down there rubbed that nub like I was trying to start a fire. Tryst gasped, her hands jumped to mine, and she growled long and deep. I kept at it as long as I could, even as my forearm muscles began to burn. Tryst whimpered and growled as her climax bubbled under the surface. I could feel her clit pulse and throb under my fingers.

Her thighs quivered, and she threw her head back, gasping as her first orgasm overwhelmed her. I gripped her rump and continued my assault, causing Tryst to squeal and growl so much I was afraid I was hurting her. Her vent clenched and spasmed around my cock, and I felt her juices dribbling down my balls. Her tail thrashed between my legs, slamming against the inside of my thighs. Getting her to orgasm turned me on so much that I came again. We held each other tight, gasping and shivering as I pumped another load into her tight little vent.

Tryst's orgasm subsided, and she collapsed on me, momentarily dazed. I couldn't believe how happy that made me! I had finally shared a fraction of the love I felt for her. I didn't care about the sex anymore ... I just wanted to make her feel good. It was the least I could do for the salazzle who gifted me the greatest present in the world: herself.

I looked up at her with heart-struck eyes and drunkenly slurred the words: "I love you."

Tryst came to a slow stop. She rested her hips and put her hands on the shoulders. And she smiled at me. A beautiful, perfect, adoring smile.

And then, for a moment, it's like a mirror had cracked in my mind.

Something was off.

I saw no love in Tryst's expression. Instead, I saw the narrow-eyed, piercing gaze of a predator who had finally caught her prey. The long-fingered hands she wrapped around me were not for comfort or intimacy ... they clutched me with rapturous greed. The toothy smile she wore was the grin of a salazzle who had finally won, and was basking in every precious second of her victory.

... and I remembered how much I fucking _hated _that.

But then the thought passed like a leaf in the wind. And as Tryst started riding me again, I remembered that I was with my perfect, adoring lover, and everything was fine.

No ... no: something was wrong! I needed to get back to that thought, to feel that emotion. Which emotion was it? Dammit! The pheromones clung to my every thought, slowing me down. I felt like my train of thought was chugging through a thick, muddy bog.

"Tryst ... Tryst," I muttered.

The salazzle hummed in her throat. She rocked my hips, riding my cock like it was meant for her and her alone. My balls were soaked from our combined juices. She felt so good, her vent was so tight ... no, no! Concentrate. Fight through the haze ... why am I fighting, again?

"Tryssssst," I slurred.

Growling, Tryst licked my cheek with a long, lingering caress of her tongue. I looked up at my lover again, to gaze upon her perfect beauty ...

And I saw _that smile._

It returned to me: that tinge of anger, like a little candle in a dark room. I clung onto that flame. Kindled it. Let it grow. Yes, Tryst wanted me ... Arceus, she wanted me bad. Her lust was real, the sex was real. But it's never _just_ sex with salazzles: this was also a game of control. A game I couldn't let her win.

"Tryst ..."

The sex was real. The lust was real. The love was not.

"Tryst, I ... I have to ..."

My fingers dug into her haunches. My hands trembled. I hated to see her win.

_I couldn't let her win!_

"Rrrah!" I threw her off of me with one great heave. Tryst screeched in surprise as she tumbled through the air. She rolled off the bed and clawed her way back onto the mattress, panting hard.

I rose up on my knees. "Oh, you slimy little temptress! You almost had me!"

Tryst hissed. She adopted a defensive stance, curling up into a ball with her tail around her legs.

"Rrrgh, just looking at you makes me want to hug you and kiss you and love you forever … and …" I grabbed my head. "And these aren't my real thoughts! It's so twisted and perverse! Fuck your pheromones! And fuck you!"

Tryst growled. She snapped her jaws at me. I knew what I had to do. I may have been seething with anger, but the pheromones were still flooding my brain. My fists were rock hard, but so was my dick.

I couldn't bring myself to hurt her, but man ... I was gonna make her pay.

I grabbed Tryst by the tail. Her eyes bugged out as I dragged her to me. She put her claws out, digging into the bedsheets and tearing them to ribbons. I jerked her tail skyward and rammed my cock back in her. A squawk escaped Tryst's throat; her tight little vent spasmed around my girth. She tried to squirm away. I hooked my hands around her thighs and pulled hard, hilting her in an instant.

I fucked Tryst hard and rough. She squirmed and fought in my grip. Every time we crashed hips, harsh grunts escaped her mouth. I grabbed her head and shoved it into the mattress. "You like eating the bedsheets, huh? Yeah, it's not so fun when the tables are turned!"

Looking back at it now, I feel silly typing it out. But you gotta understand: the pheromones were constantly swirling in my mind: if I didn't hold onto the rage, they'd take over again. The only way to stay sane was to hatefuck her with my rageboner.

At first, Tryst remained stiff in my arms, looking uncomfortable and conflicted. Yet as minutes passed, and the damn lizard began to push _back_.

"Eh?" I looked down at the salazzle I was dominating.

Tryst's lavender eyes stared back at me. She panted with mouth agape, her pink tongue out on the bed. But she had gotten her bearings, and – fuck me – she was actually _liking _it.

I realized this must be a new experience for Tryst. Salazzles are always the aggressor, the one in control. Tryst has always had sex on her own terms, never anyone else's. But now _she _was the one to be held down and mated mercilessly … this was strange, new, and exciting!

Dammit, I couldn't even hatefuck her properly.

Tryst lifted her tail higher for me – I no longer had to hold it up. I felt her muscles straining, her scaly skin bunched into rolls around her tail base. I slammed into her haunches, creating a wet slapping sound of skin crashing into scales. Tryst squealed and crooned on every thrust. Her tight salazzle puss was dripping wet. Every crash of our hips, my dick spread her scaly slit wide, forcing droplets of pussy juice to fall onto the torn bedsheets.

Her tail slithered across my chest, feeling me up. She wrapped the tip of her tail around the back of my neck and those dense tail muscles gripped me tight. Tryst's reptilian groans filled the room. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head. Her tongue flopped listlessly out of her mouth. The rough dicking I was giving this salazzle was driving her crazy!

The air was saturated with musky pheromones. The room seemed to rock and spin. I pushed her shoulders down into the bed, forced her down. She grunted and churred, wiggling her hips in response. I bent forward, putting my hands down on the bed aside her shoulders. Her thick tail pushed against my stomach. I wasn't even sure if her tail could bend that much, but we made it work.

Panting hard, Tryst wriggled in the throes of lust … but her gaze drifted back to me. And her eyes narrowed. She licked her lips and growled approvingly. Arceus, that turned me on more than I wanted to admit. I fucked her with all the love and fury I mustered – shaking the entire bed with every thrust. Tryst's neck went rigid, her mouth agape in a silent moan as my dick worked that salazzle puss hard.

Crooning, Tryst bit into the mattress and held on tight. Her long fingers grasped at the sheets, bunching them up and pulling on them. And _still _she rocked her hips against mine! If I so much as paused for a breather, she'd pick up the pace, thrusting her hips against me and driving me deep inside her puss again. Arceus, this lizard would not quit! My dick was starting to hurt. How long had we been going? We had to stop before I passed out!

"I need to cum again." I panted. "I need to cum inside of you."

Tryst let out a low, feral growl that both terrified and enticed me. That really seemed to rile her up! Her tail wriggled against my chest. She pushed back into me, yearning for me to finish inside of her. Arceus, that only made me want her more. Tryst was the perfect lover … so annoyingly perfect!

Tryst's legs quivered, her body tensed up. I realized she was going to cum again, and the thought turned me on. Rrg, I couldn't get her love out of my mind! I focused that rage into every thrust. The salazzle arched her spine and crooned as the throes of climax overwhelmed her. The lizard made sounds I'd never heard before. I held her close as her vent quivered around my cock, leaking even more juices. Arceus, those muscles of hers were magical! It's like she was trying to get me to cum!

It was too much to bear. I felt my orgasm coming fast. I gripped her haunches tight and exploded inside of her one last time, gasping as the pleasure overwhelmed me. Her tail slid down, curled around my waist. She wrapped that long muscular tail around me and held on so tight that I couldn't pull out, even if I wanted to. We stayed locked together as our juices mixed deep in her vent. Her quivering vent accepted every last ounce of cum my taxed body could muster. Arceus, this lizard was going to be the death of me.

I held on until the euphoria passed. And then I let go and fell backward onto the bed, hitting my noggin against the headboard. Tryst collapsed onto her stomach, her spread thighs still quivering and her twitching tail raised in a limp arch. I saw my cum leaking out of that _scaly lizard slit _and onto the bedsheets … and seeing that filled me with a mix of disgust and arousal. I was glad when that tail finally relaxed, hiding my debauchery from view.

I laid still and tried to catch my breath. I was overheated and exhausted and my balls had been completely drained. My dick ached, my legs burned, and my body's many scratches stung from the sweat. My bed sheets were torn to ribbons and drenched with salazzle fluids. I'd never had sex that intense in my life! And it was with a pokemon, of all things … ugh. Cool it, Riley: it's just the pheromones.

Tryst rolled onto her back, her petite chest rising and falling rapidly as she panted. The salazzle had finally been sated, thank goodness: my dick was still hard, but I didn't have anything left in me. Panting still, Tryst slipped her long fingers deep in her vent, then pulled them out and licked them clean. Gross. She did this a few times, then – with a strained grunt – she sat up and began cleaning her messy slit, slipping her tongue deep inside herself and noisily slurping up all the cum she could find.

I watched her, too tired to move, and struggled with the artificial love I felt for her in my mind. I was happy that I got her to cum, happy that she seemed satisfied … and that's so twisted! This damn lizard forced _me_ to have sex with _her_ ... and now _I'm_ the one feeling grateful?! I hated myself, I hated that I got too cocky, I hated that I didn't anticipate that she'd turn my own pokemon on me, and I hated that she twisted my mind into falling in love with her.

Most of all, I hated that she won.

But in the end, as we both lay on our bed, exhausted and satisfied, I had to admit one thing: losing ... felt pretty good, actually. Tryst was wild, and so was the sex! It wasn't anywhere near as weird as I was expecting (though still a bit weird). I might not mind letting her win again, if she goes easy on the pheromones next time.

I wondered what this meant for me. I was now a pokefucker. Or – hell … I might as well start using the proper term now: pokephile. My life was never gonna be the same. Even if we never screw again, I'll still always have this on my conscious. And what of Tryst? Did she consider me her slave now? Was she going to try and control me just as she did the rest of my pokemon? I couldn't let that happen. I had so many questions ...

When the exhausted lizard had finished cleaning herself, she crawled to me, claws digging into my skin as she pulled herself up. She then licked my dick clean, meticulously lapping up our combined fluids off my shaft and balls. What was it about the taste that she loved so much? Her nose sniffed around, looking for more. When she could find none, the lizard curled up against me and rested her head on my chest with a satisfied burp. Her eyes closed. Her hand went down to my dick. She wrapped it up in her fingers and clutched it tight: her new favorite toy. She wasn't ordering me around, she wasn't humiliating me ... the lizard just wanted to cuddle. That's something I've never seen her do before, not with any other pokemon.

Maybe Rufio was right about Tryst mating for pleasure, too. Maybe, sometimes … salazzle sex really is _just _sex.

... I could get used to this.

I stayed in bed with Tryst for a few minutes, enjoying her company. But I felt a headache coming on. Wasn't sure if it was pheromone sickness or the dehydration. Maybe both – I should get some water. I sat up slowly, careful not to disturb Tryst. Ugh, the whole room was spinning. I felt nauseous. I opened up my windows all the way and stumbled to the door, completely naked.

I opened up the door and swore in surprise of lay before me. "Rufio! What the hell? Gross, dude!"

My lucario laid in the hallway, back against the wall. He panted hard. His furry chest was covered in cum, and his red rocket was still twitching. His eyes glanced my way._ "The Demon Lizard left us all full of lust and needing relief. When you mated her, your auras bloomed with desire, and they ... resonated with me."_

"So you ..." I pinched the bridge of my nose. "You got off ... using our auras? That's seriously weird, Ruf."

_"Master ... I am sorry."_

I sighed. "It's fine."

_"No, I am sorry I betrayed you. We all betrayed you. I beg for forgiveness."_

"It's not your fault, lil buddy. I forgive you." I stepped over him and made way for the kitchen.

_"I would not go out there if I were you."_

I froze. "What?"

_"There is a human thing – an embarrassing thing."_

I rubbed my forehead. "Arceus, you mean ...?"

_"Your other pokemon … needed relief, too."_

"Right ..." And just like that, I realized that water from the bathroom sink was just as good!

I returned to my bedroom and shut the door behind me. Tryst sprawled herself across my bed, her eyes still blissfully closed. As I filled up a cup of water from the connecting bathroom, I heard Rufio's telepathy reach me from the hallway.

_"Master ... I am happy you have finally mated a pokemon. This is great news."_

I sighed and took a much-needed drink of cool water. And why is that, I wondered.

_"Because the Demon Lizard is not the only pokemon who desires you."_

I spat water all over the mirror.

THE END


End file.
